Green with Envy
by LordofFullmetal
Summary: When Envy finds himself at rock bottom for the first time in his life, unexpected allies show up to pull him out of the pit he's fallen into. But can he overcome his past and learn to let go, or is he too far gone to be saved? The Elric brothers are struggling; both to overcome their own difficulties with Envy, and to hide the truth from Roy. Will he find out their secret?
1. Chapter 1

HALLELUJAH! People, I have good news!  
So for the longest time, I've been having problems with my paragraph spacing not appearing properly once my chapters were posted. The formatting was basically squishing it all down into one massive block of text and making it hard to read.  
I FINALLY FIGURED IT OUT. So you shouldn't have to worry about that being an issue anymore. With that said, I'm reuploading this entire story as we speak with the fix, and I know what to do to avoid it in future, so this should no longer be a problem.  
Enjoy the now legible story~~

The streets of Central were alive with the busy noon rush. The warm summer air was filled with the babbling sound of civilians, and the streets were so packed a matchstick could barely fit between them.  
This was making it extremely difficult for Edward Elric to keep track of his brother.

"Gah! Where the hell are you now? Al? Hey Al!" He scratched his head as he stared at the busy city street. "It's days like this I wish he was still a seven-foot tall suit of armour." He decided to check the alleyways, in case Al had stepped into one to get out of the crowd. Heading down the street and looking down each one, he stopped once he saw the familiar silhouette.  
"There you are!"  
Al barely responded, seemingly distracted. Noticing for the first time that his brother was crouching over something, Ed jogged down the alleyway towards him.

"What's up, find another stray cat?" He mentally prepared himself for the lecture he knew he'd have to dispense, followed by the puppy dog eyes from Al. Those goddamn puppy dog eyes that almost got him every time they were used.  
What he _wasn't_ expecting to see was Envy.  
The homunculus was lying by Al's feet. His hair was a disheveled mess, and he was totally still. He seemed to be unconscious, or at least feigning as much. From what Ed could tell, he didn't seem to have any injuries.

"What the hell?"  
"I have no idea. I just found him like this. What do you think happened?"  
"Well whatever it was, it's not our business," Ed scoffed dismissively as he turned away. Al threw his hands up.  
"Brother, we can't leave him like this!"  
"Why not? He'd just as soon kill us as talk to us; you know that."  
"That doesn't give us a license to be just as bad! He looks like he's in trouble, Ed! We should help him."  
"What, and risk him strangling us in our sleep?"  
"Fine, we'll sleep in shifts."  
Ed raised his eyebrow. "The fact that you have to suggest that shows how awful of an idea this is."  
"Can you honestly tell me that if we left him here and he died, you wouldn't feel even the littlest bit guilty over it?"  
"He's a _homunculus_, he's not going to die. We've never seen one just keel over before, why should it start now?"  
"You don't know that; we've also never seen a homunculus pass out before. Yet here we are."

Ed groaned.  
"Alphonse James Elric, you are going to be the death of me."  
"So that means I win, right?"  
"Fine! He can stay with us until we can be certain he won't die. But he's _not_ going to Winry and Granny Pinako's house. I don't want him knowing where they live."  
"That's fair. Where else can we take him?"  
Pushing his hands through his hair, Ed thought about it.  
"I can probably pull some strings with Mustang and get us back into the military hotel."  
"Oh yeah, they were pretty good at not invading our privacy," Al mused. "After all, they didn't catch us that whole time we were doing philosopher's stone research."  
"The problem," Ed sighed, "is that he's going to want to know _why_. And I don't think he'll be too pleased to hear that we plan to harbour a homunculus there. Especially not one of the ones who attacked us at Lab 5."  
"So don't tell him that's what we're doing."  
"What else do I tell him?! You know what he's like, he's going to say no if we don't give him a reason!"  
They thought about it, while Envy lay unconscious on the ground before them.

. . .

"Colonel Mustang speaking."  
"Hi, Colonel… How are things in the office?"  
"What do you want, Fullmetal."  
"What?" Ed sputtered. "Why do I have to _want_ something?! Can't I just want to talk to you?"  
"Aside from the fact that you haven't insulted me yet? You _never_ just want to talk to me. Every time you call it's because something went wrong on a mission; you racked up too much collateral to fix by yourself, or you just fought some crazed alchemist, or you got hospitalised."

Ed flushed, fuming. "Yeah well I'm not even _in_ the military anymore, Bastard."  
"And you haven't called me _once_ since you retired. My case stands."  
"Bullshit, yes I-" he paused, thinking back, and realised that what Mustang had said was true.  
"Oh geez. I really need to get better at keeping in contact with people."  
"Do my ears deceive me, or did you just say 'I' and 'need to get better at' in the same sentence? Well, at least _some_ part of you is growing."  
Ed immediately bit his lip, fighting back the retort that came to mind with all his strength. A few seconds passed before Mustang's voice came over the line again, his tone markedly different to the mocking one he'd used before.

"Fullmetal? This is the part where you scream at me nonsensically."  
"Stop calling me that," Ed snapped. "I'm not a State Alchemist anymore." He leaned against the cold metal of the phone booth, closing his eyes.  
"And, well, I guess you're right after all. I _am_ calling because I need a favour."  
"I knew it. What do you want?"  
"I need you to get Al and I back into the military hotel."  
"Can't you stay at a normal hotel?" Mustang sounded exasperated now. "I know you got used to the luxury the military hotel provides, but – as you pointed out yourself – you're not military anymore."  
"No, we can't! It's important, Mustang."

There were several long minutes of silence on the other end, as Ed stood with anticipation building in his chest. He kept glancing down the alleyway where he'd left Al and Envy, concerned that something bad might have happened in his absence. Maybe Envy had been faking the whole time, and had taken his chance now that Al was alone. The thought made his heart race, and he seriously considered abandoning his phone call to go check.  
"Edward! Can you hear me?"  
Ed's attention shot back to the phone, and Mustang's now deeply concerned tone.  
"Sorry, I was distracted. What?"  
"Ok, now I know something's wrong. You just apologised to me." Mustang's voice dropped suddenly, and Ed was certain it was to make sure no one else in the office could hear their conversation.

"Edward, be honest with me. What's going on?"  
"Look, we-" Ed paused, guilt riddling his insides, before he recited the pre-planned excuse they had set up. "We're being pursued by someone, ok? It's not a big deal, we don't need your help or anything. But we're trying to lay low for a while; and since my resignation was made _very_ public, we're pretty sure they won't be looking for us at the military hotel."  
"Ed, why didn't you just start with that? Of course I can help you; I'll call them and let them know you're on your way. I'm sure they can make an exception for a famous retired alchemist. But who's pursuing you? Are you sure you don't need help? It sounds pretty serious if _you're_ backing down from a fight."  
"Oh it's not that, really," Ed rushed to reassure him, "It's more Al I'm worried about. He's not exactly indestructible anymore, and we're both very aware of that right now. Especially since-"  
He cut himself off, remembering suddenly that Al wasn't far away. He didn't need to finish the sentence anyway.

"I understand. I'll take care of it, on one condition."  
"And what's that?"  
"If you get in over your head, you _tell_ me. Is that understood?"  
"Yeah, yeah. Whatever." He hung up, rushing back to where he'd left Al. Finding him totally unharmed and Envy still on the ground, his shoulders dropped in relief.  
"Ok, let's go. I got Mustang on board."  
"Wait, that really worked?" Al asked, amused. Ed grinned.  
"Obviously, he was willing to do a favour for the best alchemist who ever served under him!"  
"Brother, you're the _only_ alchemist who's ever served under him."  
"What's that supposed to mean?!"  
He picked the unconscious homunculus up as they bickered, slinging him over his shoulders, and the three started to make their way to the hotel.  
Somewhere in Eastern Command, Roy threw his head back with an impatient sigh as he slammed the phone harshly down onto its holder. Hawkeye glanced up with a worried expression, but returned to her duties once he waved her away. He tented his fingers, staring at his paperwork but finding that he couldn't focus on it anymore.  
"Fullmetal, what have you gotten yourself into this time?"

. . .

The first thing Envy registered was that he felt like absolute _Hell_. The time he'd gotten run over by a truck hadn't been this painful. As for his strength? It seemed to be non-existent. As the room around him came into focus, he realised that he wasn't on the streets of Central where his memory had blacked out. He was lying in bed, in what had to be some kind of hotel room judging by the bland décor.  
_Someone had moved him._

He leapt to a sitting position, violet eyes widening in panic as he tried to ascertain where he was and who had taken him. He came to regret his actions very quickly when a surge of pain and dizziness shot through his body, forcing him back down.  
"So you're not dead."  
At the familiar voice, Envy's face immediately scrunched into a scowl.  
"Oh no… Don't tell me."  
Slowly, his eyes met the golden ones of Edward Elric. The alchemist was sitting near the door with his legs crossed, and his blonde hair fell to the edge of the chair's arm where his head rested on his palm.

A blinding fury overtook every inch of Envy's being. Once again he tried to leap up. He wanted to attack, to punch, to _hurt_ the person standing before him. But just as before, his body failed him and he was forced to stay put in bed. He cried out in frustration, unable to understand why he hadn't healed yet, why he was so damn _weak_. Just like-  
His mind wouldn't let him finish the thought. He would _never_ compare himself to those lowly creatures. Unable to kill the bratty alchemist, he settled instead on the most violent glare he could muster.  
Edward turned to another person next to him, one Envy didn't recognise. He was taller than Ed, Envy could see that even though one of them was seated. His eyes and hair were much darker, too, more of a bronze than a true gold. But something about his features was sharply similar to those of the Fullmetal Brat. And as Ed spoke to the boy, Envy _recognised_ the tone he was using. A far cry from Ed's usual raised voice and brash tone, he was speaking softly. Tenderly, with a warmth he almost never displayed. Envy had only ever heard it used on one person.  
"Whoa wait, is that your _brother_? Did you guys actually do it?"

Ed's attention snapped back to Envy, and he served him with a glare so similar to Envy's own that it stunned him into silence. That was something else he hadn't seen before.  
"That's none of your concern. You're lucky to even be here right now." Envy scoffed.  
"It's plenty of my concern, Pipsqueak," he drawled, enjoying the way the word made Ed's face change, "But I guess none of that matters right now. Where the hell am I? Why are you two here? Does anyone want to fill me in?"  
"We found you passed out on the street," the younger brother filled in. "So we brought you here."  
"Where's 'here'?"  
"The military hotel," Ed responded. "In Central. We didn't take you far."  
"Ok, so you caught yourself a homunculus. Good for you. What happens now?"  
"We'll let you stay here with us until you've recovered enough to get lost. After that, we'll be happy if we never see you again." On that kind note, Ed stood, leaving the room and dragging his brother with him. Envy balled his fingers into a fist and glared at the door, wondering how the hell he managed to get himself into these messes.

Outside, Ed turned to confront Al. "Well that went well."  
"You know, you didn't help matters."  
"Saving his life is one thing. If you expect us to make friends in there, you have another thing coming. He held you hostage, Al! He threatened to _kill_ you! Did you forget that?"  
"We don't know _why_, Ed. We don't actually know anything about him. Maybe he was being forced, just like you were when you almost sacrificed hundreds of lives to create a stone. And no, actually, it was Lust who threatened to kill me. Trust me, I remember."  
Ignoring his brother's abnormally snarky tone, Ed shook his head at him. "We know that he's an enemy. That's good enough for me."  
"Just try not to kill each other while he's here. Please?"  
"I can't make any promises for him," Ed snapped, softening a little when he saw Al's face, "but I'll do my best."

. . .

Meanwhile, in a dark, dusty ballroom, a woman was pacing back and forth and grumbling under her breath. She halted as soon as she saw a bald, rounded creature bounding towards her.  
"Gluttony. Report."  
Gluttony pulled to a stop, barely managing to avoid crashing into her. His voice was a high-pitched whine that sounded almost painful as the words tore from his throat.  
"I looked everywhere; I can't find him! He's gone!"  
The woman muttered in annoyance, clasping her hands together and leaning down to his level.  
"I want you to bring me Lust, Gluttony. Can you do that?"  
"And then I can eat?" Gluttony asked doubtfully. The woman nodded, a kind smile belied by her cold eyes.  
"And then you can eat."  
"Yippee," Gluttony cried as he jumped for joy. "Ok, I'll be right back with Lust!" He ran from the room, and the woman finally allowed her composure to slip.

It had been too long since Envy had left. He was never gone for this long, never in the 400 years he had existed. They had their differences, sure, but he always returned to her after a day or so to continue his work. This recent disappearance was… unsettling, to say the least.  
Envy was one of her most highly skilled servants; if she lost him, progress would be set back by weeks if not months. She couldn't lose him. She wouldn't _allow_ it. Envy wouldn't become another Greed.  
She was going to find him, no matter what it took.

. . .

Well, that's the end of chapter one. In case you couldn't tell by now, this is an Envy focused story. I've wanted to write one for a really long time, and I've seen a lot of other similar stories floating around recently, so now that I've finished For Eternity I decided to take the plunge and make that my next project. He's such an interesting character to me - especially in the 03 anime where I felt like his backstory is way more intriguing – and there are a lot of directions he can go in. So let's explore some of the possibilities together, shall we?


	2. Chapter 2

Hours after Envy's stormy fury had finally reduced to a calm rumble of anger, the brothers once again entered the hotel room where he was being kept. The homunculus was finally able to sit upright, but it was obvious from his wobbly posture that all was still not well with him. Ed raised his hands in a gesture of surrender.  
"Not gonna try to kill me this time, are you?"  
Envy snorted, looking away.  
"Well I can't get up, so there's that. I guess you're safe… for now."

He sighed, crossing his arms. Despite the front he was trying to put on, it was easy to spot the discomfort in his body language.  
"Has this ever happened to you before?" Ed asked.  
"And why on Earth would I tell _you_ that?! You're the enemy, Pipsqueak."  
Ed turned and started walking away, to Al's annoyance.  
"Fine. If you'd rather die, go ahead and die. One less homunculus for me to worry about."  
Envy swallowed, and an almost primal look entered his eyes. His body shook slightly.  
"No."

Ed turned back to face him. "'No' what?"  
"This has never happened to me before," Envy admitted through gritted teeth. "You're aware by now that homunculi have advanced healing capabilities?"  
Ed nodded, remembering Greed.  
"Well they should've kicked in by now. I have no idea why they haven't. Who knows, maybe I _am_ dying." He shrugged. "Maybe my stones have finally run out of juice."  
"Stones?" Ed paused, realising what Envy meant.  
"The red stones."  
"The ones from Xenotime?" Al asked.  
"Yeah. I'm pretty sure those are what power homunculi. When I fought Greed, there was a puddle of red water on the ground."  
"So, he'd already been sealed when you fought him. That's how you won," Envy mused.  
"Sealed?"

Envy put his hand up.  
"Whoa there, I'm not telling you _all_ our secrets. We're still enemies, don't you forget that. The only reason I'm even talking to you right now is because there's a slim chance you can save my life. And if I'm being totally honest, I'd rather not die." He sighed. "But yes, our bodies are powered by red stones. When we're first born, we don't look like this," he glanced down at himself. "We look like twisted masses of flesh; like nightmares given life."  
Al stopped breathing for an instant. He glanced at Ed, who shared a similar horrified expression.  
"What did you just say?"  
Envy's brow raised in confusion for an instant, before a gleeful smile crossed his face and he snapped his fingers.  
"Oh yeah, I forgot! You guys know what that looks like already! You've seen it, haven't you?"

Ed struggled to regain his composure. He'd known when he first saw that woman that she looked similar, similar enough for him to stop and take note… But he'd had no idea… She couldn't be. It wasn't possible.  
Envy leaned forward. "Wait, don't tell me you didn't _know_." His teeth, sharper than a normal person's, flashed through his wicked grin. "You're an alchemist, right? Don't tell me you did all that research on human transmutation without discovering what happens when an alchemist tries and fails to bring back the dead."  
Al was the first to speak. "Are- are you saying that we created a homunculus?"  
"Well duh, how do you think we found you in the first place? Why do you think we targeted _you_ to help us create a stone? Do you think we chose two random kids just because you showed up at Lab 5? No, we planned your involvement long before you even knew that lab existed. We know that an alchemist has committed human transmutation when we find the homunculus left behind."  
Clenching his fists, Ed stormed silently from the room. Al barely glanced after him, consumed in his own emotions. Envy cocked his head at him.  
"What'd I say?"  
Shaking his head, Al followed his brother.

Ed slammed his automail fist into the wall, taking a massive chunk out of it. He put his head in his hands, just barely biting back a scream of disgust as Al caught up to him.  
"Brother…"  
"Don't you see, Al? This is it. The final punishment for our sins. We were arrogant enough to play God, and this is what happens. We created a monster."  
He leaned against the wall. Al looked behind them towards the door of Envy's room.  
"Maybe not."  
"You heard what he said! And we already know he's right. We both knew how a homunculus was created before we ever even attempted that transmutation. We were just so caught up in everything else that happened that I never realised… I never even stopped to think…" His voice broke, and Al could tell he was holding back tears.  
"That's not what I meant."

Ed raised his head, looking up at his brother. Al bit his lip and steeled himself before continuing, knowing that Ed wouldn't like what he was about to hear.  
"I noticed something. When we were talking to Envy."  
"Oh shut up, Al. I know you want to see the good in everyone, but don't you think you're taking it a bit far?"  
"Just listen to me! I know you saw it too, Ed. You just don't want to acknowledge it. Envy's not just a monster! There's something there! When you mentioned the idea of him dying, when he woke up in a strange place and had no idea where he was… Something _stirred_ inside him."  
"Obviously. I can't imagine even a homunculus wants to die."  
"But that's exactly my point! He _feels_ things. He gets scared and uncertain, just like us. Don't you think it's even possible-"  
"_**No**_, I don't."  
"But-"  
"Don't go there, Al." Ed's tone was low, angry in a way Al had never heard directed at him. "Seriously. Just don't." He left and entered their own hotel room, slamming the door behind him. Al threw his hands up in frustration.

"Brother, I don't have the key…" He hit his head against the wall, stopping when he saw the hole left by Ed's outburst.  
"Of course he'd just leave it there for me to fix. Why would he ever clean up after himself?" Al sighed, taking out his chalk. Drawing a quick circle on the wall, he tapped it and watched as the hole in the wall slowly sealed over. Ed had always been messy, especially when he got angry – but at the very least, he'd always _tried_ to clean up afterwards. For some reason that had stopped when Al got his body back. Now it was always Al's job to fix Ed's mistakes. He couldn't help but feel like now that he wasn't actively on the edge of death anymore, Ed had started taking him for granted again.  
He paced for a few minutes, trying to figure out what he was going to do now that he was locked out. He realised that while Ed had the key to their room, _he_ still had the key to Envy's room. He wasn't sure he wanted to face him again after the revelation they had just had, and he knew Ed would _kill _him if he found out Al had been alone with the homunculus. But he didn't really think Envy was capable of trying anything in his current state, and he supposed anything was better than sitting in the hallway.  
Bracing himself, he went back to Envy's room and let himself in.

Envy looked up as Al entered, delighting in the tense posture the boy held.  
"Why are you back? Figured you'd want a break from interrogating me after that little tidbit of information."  
"Doesn't matter."  
"Suit yourself," Envy shrugged. Al sat down on the room's couch, and curled into a ball. He focused on his breathing, trying to calm himself.  
Envy watched him for a time, curious. Finally, he spoke.  
"Do you want the rest of the information I was about to give you, or not?"

Al looked up. He supposed he shouldn't be surprised at Envy's total lack of respect; it was _Envy_, after all. Besides, part of him had to admit that he _was_ interested in learning more about the inner workings of a homunculus.  
He sat up properly, turning to face him. "You know what? Sure. Keep going."  
Envy rolled his eyes.  
"When a homunculus is created, we look like… _that_. You know what. We only start to look human after we've eaten a sufficient amount of red stones. Those stones are the reason we're immortal; they give us all of our powers."

Al thought back to Lab 5, where he had seen Ed step into a puddle of red water. He had been out of it at the time, focused on the fact that he had almost died as well as the fear that he might not even be real, but he had still noticed what the substance did to his brother.  
"I guess that makes sense. They're prototype philosopher's stones; they're pretty powerful even in their own right. But wait, why would you even tell me that?"  
"Why wouldn't I, if there's a chance you can use it to save my ass?"  
"You just admitted that the stones are what give you your immortality," Al pointed out. "We could use that information to defeat any one of you."  
"No you couldn't," Envy laughed. "It's not that easy, especially where I'm concerned."  
"why 'especially where you're concerned'?"

Envy tsked at him.  
"Now _that_ would be giving away too much."  
"Fine, I won't push it." Al thought about what he had just been told.  
"What exactly happened before you passed out?"  
Envy scrunched up his face. "I don't remember a whole lot, honestly. Out of nowhere I just started to feel… sick." He refused to use the word 'weak'. He was _not_ weak.  
"Had you just been using your powers?"  
"Hey, come to think of it I had just shapeshifted not long before." The realisation sent a chill down Envy's spine. He had always known this day was coming; it was inevitable that his power source would eventually run out. But he still didn't want to accept it. This couldn't be the end.  
"So that's it then. It must have something to do with your red stones."  
"I'm probably just running low," Envy commented dismissively. "I have been alive for 400 years; that's a long time."  
"So what happens when you run out?" And Envy was surprised at what he saw on the young alchemist's face. He looked almost… worried. Envy forced a nonchalant grin onto his face.

"Same thing that happens when a human body runs out of energy, I guess. We're not really that different, biologically."  
"You mean you're… No. You won't. We'll find another way."  
Envy's tone raised in mocking surprise. "Wow! Are you… upset at the idea of me dying? You do realise that I'm responsible for the murders of thousands of innocent people, right?"  
"I'm upset at the idea of _anyone_ dying when there's a way to stop it," Al argued. "My brother taught me that all life has value."  
"Yet he _used_ lives to bring your body back," Envy pointed out. Al's mouth dropped open.  
"No he didn't! He promised me he wouldn't use a stone!"  
"Oh really? What did he give up then? Equivalent exchange. He must've sacrificed an awful lot to get your body back. Humans are expensive."

Al paused. Envy's smirk widened.  
"You're telling me you don't _know_ what the trade was? Didn't you ask?"  
"I did, he-" Al thought back to Ed's words. "He didn't really answer me. He just told me that I didn't need to worry about it."  
Envy leaned back against the headboard. "Seems suspicious to me. The fact that he didn't tell you. I'd be worried if I were you. But hey, who am I to judge your relationship with your brother?"  
"You're right, you _shouldn't_ be judging what you don't understand." Al responded. His head shot up at a knock on the door, followed by Ed's voice."Hey Al, you in there?"  
"Crap," Al muttered. "He's gonna kill me." Getting up, he headed for the door and unlocked it. Sure enough, Ed's expression was a mixture of concern and anger.

"Seriously? What did we decide on? No one gets left alone with Envy! It's not safe!"  
"Well no one _would've_ been left alone with him if you hadn't locked me out of our room! What was I supposed to do?"  
Ed flushed, as his hand reflexively went to the pocket where Al knew he had their room key. "Oh shoot, yeah, I didn't even think."  
"No, you didn't," Al responded haughtily. "You never do." Ed's look of embarrassment was swiftly followed by one of chagrin.  
"Sorry about that, I guess this one _is _my fault." Ed was murmuring, so low the others could barely hear him. Al raised a hand to his ear.  
"Sorry, what was that? I didn't hear you." Ed returned a sharp glare.  
"Geez, when did you get so sassy?"  
Their argument was brought to a halt by the entrance of another person; this new addition was one of the hotel staff. Al moved to stand in front of Envy, blocking him from view as the brothers listened to what the mousey girl had to say.  
"S-Sorry if I'm interrupting something. There's a call on the line for Mister Edward Elric."  
"What? Who's calling?" Ed frowned. No one should know he was here, except-  
"A Colonel Roy Mustang."

. . .

Roy twisted the phone line impatiently as he waited, listening to the silence on the other end. He knew he shouldn't be this worried, knew the boys were more than capable of handling some stray attacker… but something about this didn't sit right with him. After spending so much time with the Elrics over the last five years, he liked to think he knew them pretty well – and something about the way they'd been talking to him had been off. Ed wasn't telling him everything.  
At long last, so suddenly that it almost startled him, he was greeted with Ed's voice.  
"What do you want, Mustang? We're busy."  
"There, that's the Ed I remember."

He allowed himself to relax slightly into his chair, meeting Hawkeye's eye from across the room. He had already mentioned his concerns to her, of course, and he saw her tense posture change too.  
"Get to the point, Bastard."  
"I'm just checking in on the… situation you mentioned to me. The reason you wanted the hotel?"  
There was a pause. It was too long, and it confirmed Roy's suspicions. Ed was checking his story with someone, which meant Roy was being lied to.  
"Right, the guy chasing us. We haven't seen him. We're hoping he's lost us, but we don't know yet."  
"You know, you never told me. Who exactly is this guy? Do you have any idea what he wants?"  
"Well we didn't exactly stop to chat, but we think he must have recognised me from my State Alchemist days. I probably just pissed him off at some point, and now he's out for revenge." Roy stayed silent for a few seconds and sure enough, surely prompted by nerves, Ed kept talking.  
"You know you don't have to worry, right? It's nothing we can't handle. We've faced worse."  
"Yes, and you almost died," Roy pointed out. "Should I remind you what happened last time you faced a single guy chasing you because your position as a State Alchemist pissed him off?"  
He still shuddered at the memory. It had been raining that day; he had always hated the rain. But he had never hated it more than in that single instant; Ed slumped on the ground with both his arm and his brother lying in pieces around him, utterly defeated, Scar's vile hand resting against his skull. Al's desperate screams as he begged his brother to get up, run, _fight_ damnit. And Roy himself? Worthless. Helpless to do anything but watch as other people rescued his subordinates from mortal peril.

Ed's angry ranting in the background started to calm, and Roy focused back on their conversation.  
"Yes yes, you're very capable. I never said you weren't. But that doesn't mean you can't be defeated, Edward. No man is invincible. Besides, I thought you said you were worried about your brother."  
"I _am_," and Roy was immediately convinced that of all the things Ed had told him, this at least was the truth. "That's why I'm being so careful. But this isn't Scar. I promised I'd tell you if I got in over my head, right?"  
"Right."  
"And have you ever seen me break a promise?"  
Roy had to smirk at the question. "No. I'll give you that much, Full- Ed," he corrected, "when you make a promise, you're not the type to take it lightly."  
"So how about you quit bugging me and let me deal with this on my own?" The irritated response ended with a click as Ed presumably hung up on him. Roy sighed and turned to Hawkeye.

"Never one for manners, that boy."  
"Well," she responded cautiously, "you have to remember that they weren't exactly raised under… ideal circumstances." She glanced behind her to make sure no one was listening.  
"Are they alright?"  
"I still don't know, Lieutenant. Ed swears up and down that they can handle this on their own, but-"  
"But we both know he likes to think he can handle _everything_ on his own," Hawkeye smiled.  
"Well that, and I'm pretty sure he's lying about the circumstances they're in."  
"What makes you say that?"  
"Are you saying if one of those boys lied to you, you wouldn't be able to tell?"  
"Fair point. So what are we going to do?"  
"I have some ideas," Roy mused.

. . .

Ed put down the phone with more force than he meant to, almost scaring the poor receptionist until Al offered her a soft-spoken apology for his brother's behaviour. Ed turned to Al with his brow furrowed.  
"I don't think he's buying it. We'd better work this out quickly."  
"Lucky I decided to talk to Envy some more, then."  
"You mean you figured out what's wrong with him?"  
"We have a theory," Al sighed. "He thinks the red stones that power his body are running out."  
"Well that's it then. We don't have any red stones, and I don't think either of us wants to make any. There's nothing we can do."  
"Ed-"  
"'Ed' what? He's _dying_; what do you want me to do about that? You know as well as I do that everyone dies eventually," he grumbled.  
"How can you be so callous about it? Wasn't it you who told me that _every_ life is important? Why is his any different?"  
"Because-"  
"What, because he tried to kill us? Do I even have to start reading out that list? And yet you never killed a single-"

He fell silent. Ed knew exactly why Al's sentence had cut off.  
"Oh. That's why." Al dropped his head.  
"Brother, you know that wasn't your fault."  
I would love for you to explain how it wasn't my fault."  
"You didn't know he was mortal. You saw him survive worse than a stab to the gut! How were you supposed to know that would kill him?"  
Ed knew Al was right, he knew it wasn't his fault. But somehow, that didn't do anything to fill the uncomfortable pit in his stomach at the knowledge that someone had died at his hand.  
He knew he'd probably feel guilty about it for the rest of his life. But as he was sure Al was trying to get at, that didn't mean he couldn't start trying to make up for it.  
"Fine. I'll look into it, do some research. I'll _try_."  
"That's all I can ask," Al smiled sadly.

. . .


	3. Chapter 3

Heya~  
Just to clear the timeline up, and clarify exactly where we are (cause it makes sense in my head, but I realise the way it's written thus far may be confusing to readers), this takes place in an alternate version of the 03 series universe. Basically the events are exactly the same up to Greed's arc and Hughes' death, but then instead of hiding Hughes' death, Mustang decides to tell the Elrics straight away. This is the point where my story diverges from the series, because the knowledge of Hughes' death forces the brothers to divert from their original course. This will be covered in more detail as the story progresses, but those are the basics just in case anyone's reading this going "when the hell is this set".  
On with the story~~

. . .

Envy had to admit; he wasn't quite sure why the Elric brothers hadn't kicked him out yet.  
He had already told them what was likely happening to him; if he was right, it wasn't a problem with an easy solution. And he had already expressed that he wasn't going to give them information that might make it easier to defeat the others. He might be… _dying_ – his mind still cringed away from the word – but he'd be damned if the other homunculi went down with him.  
So why hadn't they thrown him back onto the street?

A familiar emotion coiled in his stomach like an ugly snake as he glared at the door. It was all their fault to begin with. He wouldn't be where he was now if not for them. Maybe that was why they were being so _nice_ to him, he speculated – maybe they had finally realised that they were the cause for all the misery in his life, and they in their infinite human weakness felt guilty about it. He almost laughed at the thought. Even if that were true, it would still be far too little too late.  
The door opened, and he tensed – only to relax when he saw that it was the younger Elric again. He leaned back away from the boy, narrowing his eyes suspiciously. If he was back in another pathetic attempt to get information about how to defeat the homunculi, he had another thing coming.

"What do you want?"  
"Nothing," the boy shrugged. "I just came in to check on you, make sure you weren't getting into anything you shouldn't be. Hungry?" He held something out, and Envy realised for the first time that he was holding a plate with a half-eaten sandwich on it. He scoffed.  
"I don't eat."  
That caused a reaction; the boy's eyebrows rose and his eyes shone with curiosity. He put the plate down on the nightstand next to the bed, engrossed thoroughly in what Envy had just told him. Belatedly, Envy wondered if he had given too much away.  
"I guess I shouldn't be surprised by that; you did say your body consumes the red stones instead. But it's still so weird to think about how different we are. The fact that you can't eat-"  
"I never said I _can't_ eat, I said I don't," Envy interrupted, resting his chin in his hand, already bored with the conversation. "I could if I wanted to, I just prefer not to. We all do; well, except for Gluttony, but you've seen what _he_ looks like."  
"Wait, you're saying Gluttony's fat _because_ he eats?"  
"I know, what a revolutionary concept." His sarcasm was quickly met with a glare.

"You know that's not what I meant. I thought that was just… his build. Homunculi are man-made, after all, not naturally born like we are. I just assumed…"  
"That our bodies are static? We get whatever we get and we're stuck with it?" He sneered. "I can see why you'd think that, but no. Like I said, we're really not that different on a biological level. Because we use red stones as our primary source of energy, our bodies usually just treat normal food like yours might treat a slice of cake. We can eat it, but it'll just go straight to our hips so there's really no point."  
A moment of silence fell between them, with Envy growing increasingly more uncomfortable as each second passed. He intensely disliked the expression the boy was giving him; he was staring at him like he was some kind of science experiment.  
"Hey, kid! Not a zoo animal."

The boy looked as if he'd been punched in the face. He looked down at the floor, seemingly upset, and Envy prided himself on his ability to still piss the Elric brats off. But what came out of the boy's mouth wasn't the typical Elric rant he'd been expecting.  
"Sorry, I didn't even think- Wow, I can't believe how much of a hypocrite I'm being."  
"Huh?"  
The boy crossed his arms as he continued staring at the ground. He seemed almost lost inside his own head as he spoke.  
"Let's just say, I know what it feels like to be stared at like that. To be asked all these questions all the time that you can't answer. To be treated like- like a-"  
"Freak." Envy finished the sentence, his voice barely audible. The boy's eyes shot up to meet his, and a sudden understanding flooded through them.  
"I had no idea."

Envy cleared his throat, narrowing his eyes and turning away with a scowl.  
"Get out of here, kid. I don't want to talk right now."  
"But-"  
"I said _get out!_" He reached over, taking the plate from the nightstand. The boy, annoying as he was, at least had the intelligence to duck out of the room and close the door just as Envy tossed it at him. While he had missed his original target it still shattered satisfyingly against the door, a million pieces scattering every which way.  
Envy curled in on himself, as if he was convinced that by making himself smaller he could squash down all the uncomfortable emotions that were starting to rise inside him. He had forced them all down once before, and had no issue with them for _centuries_. Why were they coming back now, of all times? Was it something the Elric boy had done to him? Was it a factor of his waning strength as his life force slowly ran out? He didn't know, and he didn't really care. The only thing that mattered to him was making them piss off back to wherever they came from, so he could go back to the comfortable jealousy he was familiar with.  
Somehow, part of him felt like it was too late for that now. Whatever had awoken inside him, it wasn't going back down without a fight. And the realisation of this simple fact made another emotion drift to the surface. One that he hadn't worried about much in his life, _until_ the last several days when he had begun to feel it entirely too often for his liking.  
Fear.

Going back to his own room, Al mulled over the conversation they had just had. The short homunculus biology lesson was interesting enough, sure – but what had really captured his attention was that brief… moment they had shared. For just a second, the shortest space of time, it was like the personality Envy normally expressed to the world was little more than an act – and it had _slipped_ to reveal something else underneath the surface, something that hurt and bled and felt. It was the same sensation Al had experienced before, of seeing something inside Envy that was _more_; but on a whole new level. If he'd had suspicions before, he was now utterly convinced. There was another person in there. All Al had to do was figure out how to bring that version of Envy out into the light.  
But he had a feeling that this would be easier said than done. Especially because if he wanted to get anywhere, he needed to get his brother on-side. And he could already tell _that_ was going to be a struggle.

. . .

Ed came up the stairs towards his and Al's room, knocking on their door. After a few seconds, he noticed that there was no answer and frowned, knocking a second time. This time he heard shuffling inside, and finally Al opened the door.  
Immediately, alarm bells started ringing in Ed's mind. Something was _wrong_. The signs were subtle, but present – Al's posture wasn't as straight as it normally was, his eyes were just the slightest bit clouded. And of course, there was the fact that he hadn't answered the door straight away, despite clearly having been in the room. Reacting with the speed only a worried brother could have, Ed pushed Al into the room and followed suite, slamming the door behind them.  
This seemed to get Al's attention; his eyes cleared up a little as he looked at Ed in confusion.  
"Brother?"

Ed's hands came down on Al's shoulders; gently, always _so _careful to be gentle with his baby brother, especially with his automail -but with urgency nonetheless. He squeezed tightly as he looked Al in the eyes.  
"Hey, what happened?"  
"What do you mean?"  
"Come on, I've known you your whole life! I can tell when something's upsetting you. Was it Envy? Did he do something? I swear to god Al if he _hurt _you…" He fought back the venom rising in his throat at the thought that that… thing had done something to harm Al. He felt Al's hand on the tense muscles of his flesh arm, trying to relax him.  
"Brother, please. He didn't do anything. I'm fine, really. We just- we had a conversation, and it got me thinking about some stuff. I've been kinda distracted."  
Ed's breath came out in a relieved sigh. "You sure you're alright?"  
"Yeah, I'm ok. You worry too much."

Releasing his brother's shoulders, Ed stepped back out of his personal space.  
"You said you had a conversation?"  
Al flinched.  
"Uh, yeah…" His pitch was too high, as if he was _asking_ the question rather than answering it.  
"What about?" Ed tried to keep his tone casual, conversational, even though he could already tell from Al's reaction that he wasn't going to love the answer.  
"About food, mostly. He was telling me that apparently homunculi can eat, but they choose not to-"

Ed had been planning on zeroing in on the 'mostly' part of what Al had said; demanding that he explain the rest. But what came out of Al's mouth after that triggered something in his mind, making him forget all about his misgivings.  
"Wait, what _exactly_ did Envy say?"  
Al repeated the homunculus' words verbatim, and Ed's brain clicked.  
"He said their bodies treat human food like ours treat cake, right? Well that's assuming we have another food source. He's saying that it's like when we eat three meals a day and _then_ cake. Our body doesn't need the cake, so it doesn't use it. But if the _only_ thing you ate that day was cake…"  
"Then your body uses that as fuel instead," Al finished with wide eyes. Ed snapped his fingers.  
"Maybe that's the solution! If he's running out of his normal energy source, maybe all he needs to do is switch to a different energy source!"  
"You really think it could be that simple?"  
"I hope so, it's a hell of a lot easier than trying to track down red stones."  
"Might not be," Al sighed, "I don't think he's gonna like the idea much."  
"He can suck it up. If saving his life just means he has to start eating like a normal person, I can think of much worse things."  
"True, I guess it's worth a shot." He ran his fingers through his hair. "We should probably give him some time to cool off though, he wasn't that happy last time I saw him."

A small cough got their attention, and the boys turned to see the hotel desk clerk again. Ed groaned.  
"God, tell me Mustang's not on the line again! I already told him twice-"  
"Um, no, it's not a phone call," the desk clerk managed in a meek voice. Ed waited for her to continue, confused.  
"It's two officers by the names of Jean Havoc and Heymans Breda. They've come to see you."

Ed fumed as the brothers made their way downstairs. Mustang had always liked to meddle in things that weren't his business, so no surprise there - but this was taking things a little far, even for him. He stopped directly in front of Havoc and Breda, who already looked like they knew what was coming, and crossed his arms impatiently.  
"Mustang sent you, didn't he?"  
"What? No, we were just in the area, we thought we'd stop by…"  
Breda's sentence fell off, clearly judging by the expression on Ed's face that it would be unwise to continue. He glanced at Havoc, who scratched the back of his head feebly.  
"Well it was worth a try."

Ed felt his eyes roll almost to the back of his skull.  
"Why are you here? What does he want _now_?"  
"The Colonel told us you were having issues with some crazy guy in the area. He seemed to think you might need a hand."  
If it hadn't been for Al's soft hand on his shoulder, silently warning him to stay calm, Ed would have lost his mind right then and there. His blood felt so hot that it honestly should have been steam, and it took everything he had not to ignore his brother's warning and just beat the hell out of the undeserving soldiers.  
No, scratch that. He wanted to beat the hell out of Mustang and his interfering ass.  
As it was, Ed knew that Havoc and Breda were just concerned for his safety, and that punching them probably wasn't the best option. Gritting his teeth, he did his damned best to look pleasant and sociable.  
"We appreciate the concern, but we've got it under control. Really."

Havoc leaned in closer, pulling his cigarette out of his mouth and holding it away so the boys wouldn't inhale any fumes.  
"You know, it's ok. You can tell us what's really going on."  
Ed's blood went from steam to ice in an instant. Next to him, he felt Al's hand stiffen and knew the same uncertain fear was flooding his body. No way… They couldn't possibly _know_. Could they?  
"What are you talking about?"  
"Well, Mustang already wasn't convinced about your little story. And then when he heard the reports from his little spy network in Central, that pretty much confirmed it for him. There are homunculi in the area. The pretty lady, and the little fat one. They're the ones you're hiding from, right?"  
"Wait, _what_?"

Ed twisted to face Al. His brother's face was ghostly pale, and his bronze eyes were downright terrified as they met Ed's gold.  
"Lust and Gluttony? They're here in Central?!"  
Breda's brow raised. "Well, yeah. We thought you knew. Unless…"  
"No," Ed snapped. "We told Mustang a million times – we were only hiding from some normal guy. We had no idea the _homunculi_ were in town!"  
"Thanks for warning us," Al interjected, "now that we know, we'll be even more careful." He threw a glance at Ed, which Ed ignored.  
"Either way," Havoc said, "Roy wants you boys to have an escort for the time being. Just in case. He's assigned us for the job."

Ed immediately swung back to face them, filling his expression with as much venom as he could.  
"No way. We don't-"  
"Don't say you don't need our help, Ed. You just told us you had no idea the homunculi were even around. What would've happened to you two if we hadn't shown up? What could've happened to your brother?" Breda said pointedly, gesturing to Al. Despite his best attempts to look tough, the thought of his brother at the end of Lust's talons or Gluttony's teeth made Ed flinch. They might not know what Al looked like in his human body, but that most certainly didn't mean he was safe.  
"You're not coming into our hotel rooms," Ed said weakly. The soldiers nodded.  
"We wouldn't dream of invading your privacy, guys. But we do have to hang around nearby, at least for now. We don't know why the homunculi are here, but Roy has a bad feeling about their proximity to you."  
"And if we know one thing about the boss," Havoc finished, "it's that his bad feelings are almost never wrong. Sorry Chief, you're stuck with us for a while."  
"Fine, we can deal with that. Now excuse us for a moment, my brother and I need to discuss something in private." Ed grabbed Al by the shoulder and pulled him back up the stairs to their room. The soldiers followed, but stayed at a distance; understanding of the boys' need for privacy. Ed all but slammed the door in their faces before speaking to Al in a hushed tone.  
"We need to get rid of him."  
He knew Al wouldn't need clarification on who 'he' was. And he was right.

"Brother, we can't."  
"Are you kidding me right now?! Lust and Gluttony are here because they're looking for him! I say we let them have him. They'll leave us alone, and hell, they might even have more red stones for him! Win-win."  
"And if he leads them back here?" Al pointed out. "The Homunculi are just looking for him now, sure. What about later? We know they want to use us to make a stone." Ed blanched.

"We won't stay here. We'll leave."  
"Do you really think the Colonel's going to let that happen now that _H__omunculi_ are in the area? He was worried enough when he thought we were just dealing with a crazed alchemist! He won't know why we want to leave, he won't _know_ that he's putting us in more danger by keeping us here, he'll just think he's keeping us safe."  
"I'm not in the military anymore; he can't order me to stay."  
"Maybe not. He can place us under house arrest, though."  
"No he can't, we haven't done anything wrong." But even as Ed spoke the words, he knew they weren't true. The look on Al's face confirmed the desperation of their situation.  
"Human transmutation. Transmuting gold. Breaking and entering. Hundreds of incidents of property damage. And he's not even aware of the fact that we're literally harbouring a fugitive!" Al counted off on his fingers. "Even if he wouldn't risk the rest of the military finding out about the human transmutation, he has more than enough reasons to place us under arrest."  
"You don't think he'd resort to that?"  
"Why not? He's a Colonel and a war hero, he can just drop the charges later and say he was wrong. No one will argue with him. Besides that… I know you two love to fight, but the Colonel does care about us, Ed. I'm pretty sure he'd do _anything_ to keep us safe. Especially after what happened to Hughes."

Ed hated the way Al's voice broke a little on the name. It was the first time they had really stopped to acknowledge it. Al stopped talking for a moment, and Ed knew he was struggling to regain his composure at the horrific reminder of the danger they had put their friends and family in. Finally, Al seemed to regain control over himself.  
"Besides, we have a guard detail now. There's no way we're going to sneak Envy past Havoc and Breda. If he could shapeshift, maybe; but he can't, and thanks to us, pretty much everyone on Mustang's team knows what he looks like. As little as we may like it, we're stuck with him for now."  
Ed knew his brother's logic in this case was infallible. While they had agreed not to go _into_ the rooms, Havoc and Breda certainly planned on staying close by; and that probably meant that getting Envy out would be near impossible if he was willing, let alone if he decided for some reason to be difficult. Which with Envy, was always a possibility.  
He sighed, giving in.  
"Fine, ok. We keep him here for now. But what if they get suspicious? We have two rooms and we're staying in one; you don't think they'll notice that?"  
Al chewed on his bottom lip in thought.  
"Not if they think that's my room."

Panic hit Ed like a weight at the sheer thought of Al spending so much time alone with Envy. Sleeping in the same room as him, totally vulnerable to anything the homunculus might choose to do.  
"You are _not_ staying in that room with him. If that's what it comes down to, I will."  
"I'm not a child, Ed!" Al said, exasperated. "I know you're worried, I know you don't want anything bad to happen to me. But I'm not stupid and I'm not ten anymore; I can take care of myself just as well as you can."  
Despite the worry still needling at his heart, Ed almost laughed at the expression on Al's face. It was very similar, he imagined, to the face he himself had worn only a few years ago as he made what would turn out to be a five-year promise. Al's bronze eyes were burning with Elric determination and above all, a demand to be heard.  
"Well," he said fondly, a soft smile crossing his own features, "I know better than to try and argue with _that_ face. Just, please Al, for me – be careful, ok?"  
"Of course," Al nodded. "We're gonna figure this out, Brother. I don't know how yet, but we will."

Al left their – now Ed's, he reminded himself – room, heading for Envy's and nodding at the soldiers as he passed. While he was just as worried as his brother at the emergence of the homunculi, and especially considering their likely reason for being in town, he had to admit that at least part of this series of events was… fortunate. He had been itching for a chance to get to know Envy better, especially after the experience he'd had earlier that morning – and here it was. Ed was likely to pop in from time to time, just to make sure Envy hadn't throttled him in his sleep, he wasn't stupid. But for the most part, Al could now guarantee as much time and space as he needed to dig beyond whatever defences Envy was putting up.  
He wasn't sure exactly what was lying beyond, or what he'd do when he got there. But he knew one thing; his Elric curiosity wasn't going to let him pass this opportunity up.

. . .

As the sun started to fade below the horizon, Lust crossed her legs impatiently over the edge of the rooftop she was sitting on. On the outside, she looked as calm and attractive as ever; her black curls folding over her shoulders and down her back, a serene stare flattening out her features. Inside, however she was in turmoil.  
If she was to admit it to herself, she had been…. Uncomfortable with Dante's leadership for a while now. She wasn't about to turn traitor, especially after how easily Greed had been defeated. Homunculi, she had to admit, were an aberration; a sin against nature. And while she didn't necessarily have to worry about the military coming after her, the truth was that for creatures like her, safety existed in numbers.

Now, though, Envy had disappeared. He had vanished before, usually after his little childish tantrums about the Elric brothers and _Him_ – Envy wouldn't let her even speak the name – but only ever for a day or two at a time. The setting of this particular sun marked the sixth day and counting since anyone had last seen him. He had never been gone for so long before; and in Lust's mind, that left only two options.  
Either something had happened to him, or he had turned down Greed's path.

She considered both options, weighing them in her mind. Envy had always been a strong fighter, having spent almost a Century mastering his own style of Capoeira – something he often bragged about. And as if that wasn't enough, he was _cunning_ too; well versed in all manners of trickery. After all, he'd needed to learn pretty quickly; his shapeshifting ability lent itself well to him playing the roles of spy, decoy, and sleeper agent of the group. Especially when one considered how difficult homunculi were to destroy, the idea of him being overpowered was almost laughable.  
Idly, she considered the possibility that Envy may have turned traitor. She couldn't imagine why, at first; he had always appeared to be the most loyal of the group. But then she remembered his violent tantrums.

No, Envy had never really been in it for Dante - at least, not that she could tell. He had his own goals in mind. And if ever the day came that those goals no longer aligned with Dante's… maybe he _would_ leave.  
And she found herself questioning; Envy was the oldest amongst them. For the longest time any of them could remember, he had been the solitary mainstay of the team. He had outlasted the previous Lust, and even Greed. If Envy had left… would others?  
The sounds of Gluttony slobbering grew steadily closer, and she looked up as he approached. He was barely standing, his massive chest heaving to catch his breath.  
"Well? Have you found anything, Gluttony?"  
"I- I think I can smell him! But I'm not sure where he is!"  
"That's good enough," Lust reassured. "At least now we know he has to be somewhere in the city. We'll find him."

While she felt lighter at the realisation of Envy being close by, and presumably alive, Lust had to admit that this news was also unsettling. If he was alive, nothing in this world could hold him in one spot against his will. Had he abandoned them?  
As much as she dreaded the answer, she knew there was only one way to find out. She had to find him.


	4. Chapter 4

Al opened the door to Envy's room, cradling something under his arm. Cautious of the men outside, he pulled it shut closely behind him. Turning around, he noticed that Envy had his head cocked to the side. His violet eyes were sparkling with curiosity.  
"Who are you hiding me from?"  
"How did you know?" Al was unable to avoid blurting out. A smirk crossed Envy's face.  
"Please, kid. You're not as sneaky as you think you are, you know that?"  
"Great," Al said with a sigh, "hope they didn't notice that too. Soldiers, to answer your question. And if they found you, the consequences probably wouldn't be that great for any of us – so I recommend that you don't cause any trouble."  
"You mean the consequences wouldn't be great for _you_," Envy said. "Remind me why I shouldn't cause trouble?"  
"You're a homunculus. A man-made scientific experiment gone wrong. And more than that; your existence is evidence that a crime took place. You really think they'll let you go if they find you?"  
"They don't know what I am."  
"Uh, hate to break it to you but these ones do. Ed drew a picture of you after Lab 5; and he wasn't shy about showing it around."

To his discomfort, Al realised that Envy still didn't seem distressed. In the back of his mind he wondered if Envy's powers might have come back, but he quickly decided against it. If that had happened, Envy surely would've taken the opportunity to escape already. It had to be something else.  
Envy leaned forward and said, in a calm, sing-song voice,  
"I know something you don't know."

A light chill beaded down Al's spine, and for a moment he almost asked if Envy somehow knew about Lust and Gluttony. If they already knew where _he_ was. If they were on their way. They had fought off three homunculi at once before, but it had been by the very skin of their teeth. He certainly didn't want to take his chances again if he didn't have to.  
He very nearly_ asked_ but at the last second, he remembered to shut his mouth. For all he knew, Envy didn't know _anything_ about the other homunculi. This could be bait, a cheap tactic to get Al talking. And if Envy didn't already know that the homunculi were out looking for him, Al didn't want to be the one to tell him. If the news of soldiers was making him consider acting out, Al didn't even want to think about how difficult Envy would become at the news of a search party.  
"You want a reason to stay quiet? Fine. We think we know how to save your life. Is that good enough for you?"  
The result was instantaneous. The smirk dropped straight off Envy's face like he'd been slapped. He shifted uncomfortably, swallowing. Part of Al felt bad for him; but he had to admit that another part of him was basking in the fact that he'd gotten the upper hand.

"Bullshit."  
"Really?"  
"You're lying. There's no way."  
"You'd bet your life on that?" And Al knew he'd won. Envy had a great many flaws, true; but the one thing Al knew he could count on was survival instinct. As evil and depraved and violent as he was, deep down Envy was still a living creature who didn't want to die. At the very least, whoever had transmuted Envy in the first place had gotten that right.  
Sure enough, Envy looked away from him and instead focused his gaze somewhere on the bed sheets.  
"Just tell me what you want from me already."

Al lowered himself to the chair near the bed. "I already told you, we're not trying to get anything out of you."  
"Bullshit," Envy said again. "You wouldn't be keeping me here if you weren't. We're enemies. The pipsqueak despises me, he makes that pretty clear, so he has to think he's getting something out of it. Equivalent Exchange, right? What, you thought if you saved my ass I'd tell you all our secrets?"  
"No," Al stated calmly, "I don't care about any of that. I'm just trying to make sure you don't die."  
"And your brother?"  
"He wants me to be happy; he'll put up with a lot to get that."  
"Pathetic."  
"You know it's true. It's the whole reason you knew to target _me_ when you wanted Ed to make a stone. You guys are very good at picking out people's weak points, I'll admit that. I'm Ed's, and you figured that out straight away."  
"And it's pathetic," Envy laughed. "You humans are such saps! Hurt one human and a _hundred_ of you start freaking out like it's the end of the world. So weak, so predictable."

Al shook his head, forcing himself to avoid getting angry with Envy's words. He knew that if he was going to get anywhere he needed to stay calm. He was witnessing something incredible; Envy was actually _talking_ to him. Openly, honestly, expressing his opinions – however disturbing they might be – as if he were in normal discourse. And as soon as Al got mad, as soon as it devolved into an argument, the walls Envy had allowed himself to drop would shoot back up and they'd be back at square one. He couldn't let that happen. So he forced himself to silently value and weigh up Envy's opinion just like he would any other person's.  
"I don't agree with that."  
"Well of course you wouldn't-"  
"Hey," Al said, his tone warning, and Envy shut up. "We're doing something here that you probably don't do all that often; we're having a normal conversation. And I understand that you're not used to that. But I'm listening to you, alright? I'm taking what you have to say seriously, even though I think it's wrong. Would it kill you to do the same?"  
For a moment, Envy looked like he was about to argue, or make a snarky comment. But then his face changed; he looked almost thoughtful.  
"Fine, you were saying?"  
"I don't agree with the idea that love is a weakness."  
Envy visibly scoffed, and Al glared at him.

"Ok, let me adjust that. Love _can_ be a weakness, but it's more than that."  
"Oh? How's that?" Said Envy, resting his hand against his chin and staring at the wall.  
"Well, think about it. My brother, Ed. He never would've done half the things he's done if not for me. Sure, you were able to use the fact that he cared about me to manipulate him; but that's also the reason he became strong enough to survive Number 48 in the first place. It's the reason he was studying so hard to become a talented alchemist, the reason he sparred every day. Because he was trying to get strong enough to protect me."  
"That may be so, but it doesn't change the fact that people do stupid things when they care about someone. They take stupid risks, make stupid mistakes. And besides, you're going to lose them someday anyway so what's the point?"  
"When you care about someone, you're always taking the risk that something bad will happen. Equivalent Exchange, after all – you can't get anything worth having without a certain amount of risk. Wouldn't you agree with that, Envy?"  
Envy frowned, seeming pensive. "Guess so."

"I understand if you don't want to talk about it, but I'm guessing you're in a similar boat, right? You're taking risks, making dangerous choices, because you feel like you're getting something out of it."  
He shrugged. "It's exactly the same thing for us. The things we want are a little different – love, acceptance, understanding – but the basic principle is the same."  
Envy fell silent, the atmosphere thickening into discomfort and tension again. Taking a calculated risk, Al got up and threw the object he had brought with him at Envy; a packet of peanuts. It bounced off Envy's chest before he actually caught it, inspecting the package.  
Envy raised a delicate eyebrow.  
"Try eating something. You might feel better."  
Envy opened his mouth to argue.  
"_Try_. You might be surprised."  
Envy sighed, rolling his eyes.  
"_Fine_, uh-"  
"Alphonse," he said, clarifying when Envy's expression turned back to confusion. "My name?"  
"Right," Envy muttered. "I'll give it a shot." He didn't move to start, so Al left him to his own devices and jumped onto the couch at the other end of the room. Flipping open a book he'd been reading on the history of the State Alchemist program, he settled down to read.  
A few minutes later, he heard the sound of incredibly reluctant crunching behind him. And smiled to himself.

. . .

What could've been anything from ten minutes to four hours later, Al was startled back into consciousness by the door closing so hard it rattled the wall around it. His body reacting even before his mind was fully awake, he leapt up to see who it was – only to find it was Ed.  
_Of course._  
He slid back down into the couch, yawning. "Brother, can you _please_ learn to open doors like a normal person?"  
Ed's voice became apologetic in an instant. "Sorry Al, I didn't realise you were sleeping."  
"Why are you even here? How long's it been, two hours?"  
"Three."  
"Wow, that's honestly longer than I thought you would last without checking on me."

He heard Envy snicker in the background. "Really? I always knew he was overprotective but come on!"  
"You give him too much credit," Al sighed as he sat back up to face the others. Ed's body language was radiating discomfort as he glanced between Al and Envy.  
"Did you two… just _agree_ with each other?"  
"Huh? Oh, I guess we did."  
"Don't do that again," Ed said, shuddering a little. "I don't like it."  
"Awww, why not?" Envy taunted idly.  
"Because it's making me incredibly uncomfortable!" Ed snapped. Al rubbed his forehead.  
"Guys, please! Not now…"

Both fell silent, but not before Ed pointed a finger at Envy in warning. "Do _not_ take this as a sign that my brother's weak and easily defeated. He will beat your ass if you try anything, you hear me-"  
"_ED_." Ed's mouth snapped shut at the tone in his brother's voice.  
"So I tried out our ideas for Envy's health before."  
"Really?" Ed sounded interested now, his eyes flashing. "How did that go?"  
"I don't know. Envy, thoughts? Feelings? Anything different?"  
Envy's lips pursed a little, as he shifted uncomfortably away from Ed's curious expression. "I don't know, what's it _supposed_ to feel like?"  
"Ok, let's try something different." Ed's hand moved out towards Envy, and the homunculus flinched. Al felt a wave of sympathy for the creature.  
Sighing impatiently, Ed held his hand still until Envy's eyes slowly crept back up. When he realised what was happening, he scoffed.  
"Please. I can stand up by myself."  
"Okay," was all Ed said as he took a step back to give Envy room. For all his insistence, when actually presented with the opportunity to get up Envy chose to sit still for several minutes.

Ed's eyebrow quirked upwards as a slight smirk played across his lips; noticing this, Envy scowled at him. "Shut your mouth and give me a second, Pipsqueak!" Ed's face turned red, and his mouth immediately clamped shut in what was a clear effort to avoid going into a rant.  
Finally taking a deep breath, Envy swung his lean frame over the side of the bed and paused for another moment, seemingly steeling himself for whatever might come next, before standing up.  
Ed waited with his arms slightly extended, ready to catch Envy if anything went wrong. Al watched curiously from his spot on the couch.  
They were weak, shaky from days of disuse; but miraculously, Envy's legs were able to hold his weight. Even so, the signs of strain were still present. His sharp teeth drew blood from his lower lip, his eyes closed in concentration as he fought to keep himself from succumbing to gravity. Finally, Ed tapped him once on the shoulder.  
"Aaaand that's enough for now."  
"What? No! I can do this!"

Ed sighed and pushed Envy back into the bed with that same air of impatience; but Al couldn't help but notice that Ed's expression held a touch more understanding than it had before. "Trust me, you don't want to push yourself too far all at once. The fact that you can stand up is good; it means our theory is probably right. But it looks like it's still gonna take some time before you're back up to snuff, unfortunately for everyone involved."  
"You don't know what you're talking about," Envy scoffed. Al rolled his eyes.  
"Actually, he does. You're not the only one around here with a masculinity complex," he said, pointedly ignoring Ed's sharp glare. Muttering under his breath, Ed stomped out of the room.  
Envy shook his head, readjusting his position.  
"Peach of a brother you got there."  
"He cares, really he does. He's just… emotionally stunted."  
Envy made a strangled sound, freaking Al out; and it took almost a full minute for him to realise what was happening and calm down.  
"Are you… laughing?"  
"No…" Envy choked, still trying to get himself back under control. But Al wasn't fooled at all, and he couldn't help but smile just a little at the Homunculus.  
"Sure, fine."

. . .

Lust frowned a little. They had been wandering the streets of Central for hours, and Gluttony still hadn't entirely managed to pinpoint Envy's location. They had managed to narrow it down to the city centre, but that was still a huge area. There was plenty of work still to be done, it seemed.  
"I'm sorry, Lust." She directed her attention towards her downcast colleague.  
"What for?"  
"I really am trying. But it's so hard; his scent's so faint."  
_Faint_, the word echoed around her mind. _Did that mean something? Was it good? Bad?_ _Should she be worried?_  
"Don't apologise," she chose to say instead, her face remaining cautiously blank despite her reassuring words, "you're doing the best you can, right? We'll find him, and we'll take him home."  
"And then I can eat?" His stomach grumbled, and he looked down at it sadly. "I'm so hungry, Lust."  
"Yes, as soon as we find him you can eat." If Envy was being held captive, which she still somehow doubted (though she had to admit it was the more pleasant possibility), Gluttony could eat the captors. If something else was the reason for Envy's disappearance… well, she'd think of something. Who knew, perhaps Dante would order that Envy himself become the meal – though Lust wasn't entirely sure she could go through with that. She knew Envy sure as hell wouldn't just lie down and die – he wasn't the type to give up.

Gluttony sniffed the air again, and grimaced.  
"I can smell those stinky Elrics, too. Can we please stay away from them, Lust? They make me hurt every time we see them!"  
Lust's ears pricked up. "The Elrics?"  
"Well, one of them. The one with metal limbs, I think. I can't smell the armour one…"  
"That doesn't matter, I'm sure he's close by." Now she was concerned. The disappearance of Envy by itself was strange, and could mean only a short number of things. But the fact that his location had been narrowed down to a particular area, and Gluttony was now sensing the famous Elric brothers in the same area? Could it be a coincidence? She wasn't so sure.

What she did know was that the Elrics had mysteriously dropped off the face of the earth almost a year before, after she and Envy had orchestrated the death of that meddling Maes Hughes. At the time Dante had been disappointed, but had simply assumed they had turned away from their pursuit of the Stone to grieve. It was logical enough, sure; she was aware that they had been close.  
Was it possible that they had returned, fresh and ready to continue their search – and potentially, had decided to take the fight to the homunculi rather than hiding in the shadows? Perhaps they were interrogating Envy at this very moment, trying to learn what he knew about the Stone? Worse still, perhaps they had learned of Envy's secret, the one he had kept hidden from everyone except Dante and herself. The one he had only admitted to her in secret, when she had caught him at his lowest moment.  
Lust stood, trying not to think about the various possibilities. Well at the very least, Dante would want to hear about this. Lust had no doubt she would be _very_ interested to hear that the Elrics had crawled back out of whatever pit they had disappeared into – she always had taken _such_ an interest in Hohenheim's sons. She would bring this news back and let her leader decide what to do. She could worry about everything else later.

. . .

Al stood at the ready, his arms by his sides but slightly tensed. Envy scoffed, rolling his eyes at him.  
"Have I fallen yet?"  
"No, but you never know."  
"And if I do, what do you think's going to happen? I'm a homunculus; I'm not going to crack my skull open and bleed out on the floor."  
Al raised an eyebrow.  
"You can barely stand up; it's probably not the smartest move to rely on your healing powers right now. We don't even know if you'll _ever_ get those back."

Envy paused. "What do you mean?"  
"Well let me put it this way. Your normal food source is red stones. We're feeding you something that, while you can clearly survive on it, isn't what you're supposed to be eating. Humans can survive on only cake, sure-"  
"Again with the damn cake metaphor."  
"That's basically what it is for you. As I was saying, humans can survive on only cake, but it's not _good_ for them. Someone eating only cake isn't going to be as healthy as someone who's eating plenty of fruit and vegetables."  
Envy yawned dramatically, but Al didn't miss the interested and somewhat worried glint in his eyes. "So the point is…"  
"For all we know, you might spend the rest of your life on _very_ limited functionality. You might never be able to shape shift or use any of your healing abilities again."  
His eyes widened a little, and Al hastened to correct himself.  
"I'm not saying that's definitely what's going to happen. We just don't know. It's too early to say."  
With that, the very thing Al had been worried about this whole time finally happened. Envy's legs collapsed underneath his weight, and he fell. Luckily, he had been standing right in front of the bed, and simply fell back onto it instead of hitting the floor.

Envy took several shaky breaths, leaning forward a little. Al couldn't help but feel a twinge of empathy.  
"That can't happen. I'm going to get my powers back, it'll just take a while."  
"Envy…"  
"It can't!"  
"Shh!" Al said, all too aware of the guards outside.  
"Why?! Why should I be quiet? I don't care about them! Nothing matters anymore anyway!"  
"Envy, calm down. Don't you think maybe you're overreacting a little? I understand that this is a shock for you, but you can learn to live without your powers."  
"You don't understand…"  
Al sank to the bed next to him. "So help me understand."  
Envy ran his hands through his hair, before rubbing his sweaty palms on his skort.  
"Do you have any idea what _she's_ going to do to me?! Without my powers, I'm useless! Do you really think she'll keep me around, out of the kindness of her heart?! No! If I'm lucky she'll kick me to the curb just like _He_ did! More likely, she's going to feed me to Gluttony so she can at least reuse some of the resources she wasted on me. There's no use keeping me around, so why not?"  
"She… Lust?" Even as Al asked, he could tell that wasn't right. His eyes widened as a realisation hit him.  
"Your master."

He didn't speak, but Al could tell from the terrified look in Envy's eyes that he had struck upon the right answer.  
The door slammed open, and Ed entered with a frustrated expression. "Anyone want to tell me what's going on in here?" He asked in a harsh whisper. "Do you have _any_ idea how hard it was to convince our escort that nothing's wrong?"  
He stopped, seemingly noticing the situation for the first time, and threw a questioning glance at Al.  
"I told him about our theory that he might not get his powers back… he's not taking it well."  
"No kidding," Ed said as he came further into the room and crossed his arms. "Dramatic much?"  
"I said the same thing, but no. He keeps talking about their leader, Ed. The leader of all the Homunculi. It actually sounds like he has a real reason to be worried."  
This seemed to intrigue Ed, his brow furrowing just a little in the way it so often did when he was researching a new theory. He joined Al on the bed.  
"Your leader?"

Envy's posture was easily the least confident Ed or Al had ever seen him. He was practically curled into a ball, his arms wrapped around himself.  
"What the hell, I'm doomed anyway." Al looked over at Ed with an empathetic expression, and Ed sighed.  
"Maybe not."  
Envy's eyes snapped up to meet his.  
"Look, I made a promise that I wasn't going to kill anyone else. That includes causing someone's death through inaction. If you're in danger, _real_ danger, we can help you. But not if we don't know where the threat's coming from."  
The Homunculus bit his lip hard enough to draw blood. Then, slowly, it seemed as though his sense of self preservation won out.  
"Fine, my leader. She… She's the one who sent us out after you all those times."  
Ed sat back a little.  
"Does it surprise you to hear we weren't working alone?"  
"Not really; based on what we know of Homunculi, someone had to have created you. We figured there must be someone pulling the strings. I'm more surprised to hear that she's so fixated on us. Why is that? After all, if she's hunting down Homunculi, surely she has a big enough pool to pull from by now. She shouldn't need us specifically."

Envy flinched. "I can't answer that."  
"Envy, you can't seriously still be-"  
"I'm _not_ protecting her," he growled. "I just- I can't. Not right now. That conversation opens a _whole_ bag of worms."  
"Fine. We'll talk about that later. I'm going to take a wild guess and say that your powers are _really_ important to her?"  
"They're about the only reason she keeps me around," Envy admitted. "Surprise, I can be a little… difficult to get along with."  
"No, really?"  
"But I've always been useful to her. More useful than any of the others, because of the shape shifting. She could slot me into pretty much any job she needed me for. She couldn't do that with most of the others. I always liked to think I was her favourite for that reason."  
"And now that you might not be able to do that anymore…"  
"She'll throw me away like she does every useless tool," he finished. Ed cocked his head to the side.  
"Why can't she just fix it though? You said the Homunculi normally feed on red stones; logically that must mean she has a stash somewhere, if she's keeping a whole team of you around. But I get the feeling if that was the case, you wouldn't be sticking around to talk to us."  
"No, she _used_ to have a stash of red stones. She used the last of them on-" he cut himself off sharply, glancing quickly between the boys. "The most recent Homunculus."  
Ed knew what he was talking about, even without the clarification. The quick glance had been enough.

"So why the panic? Just go somewhere else. Start a new life somewhere. I know that's scary if working for her is all you've ever known, but it has to be better than going back at this point."  
"It's not that simple. I'm her favourite, remember? At this point she'll have sent the others out to search for me."  
Ed and Al shared a look.  
"Yeah, we know. Lust and Gluttony are in town. We figured they were probably looking for you, but it's nice to actually have confirmation."

This information almost sent Envy into another full-blown panic attack. Al put a gentle hand on his shoulder. "Calm. It's not over yet; they don't know you're here or they would have come for you already."  
But they're _going_ to," Envy insisted. "Gluttony can probably smell me from miles away! It's only a matter of time."  
"And what do you think will happen when they do? We're not going to just let them take you, Envy. Not if we have reason to believe they're going to kill you."  
"So what are you going to do against two homunculi? Especially without access to my powers?"  
"We'll figure it out; we've held our ground against more than two of you at once, remember."

A knock sounded at the door, and the brothers jumped. Ed got up, throwing Envy and Al a warning glance before answering. He made sure to keep the door close to his body, so that the visitor couldn't see past him.  
It was Havoc; he could actually tell a split second _before_ he saw the man, the thick waft of smoke giving it away. Coughing a little, Ed raised his sleeve to his mouth and nose as a makeshift air filter. Noticing his discomfort, Havoc immediately dropped the cigarette and put it out under his boot.  
"Sorry, Chief. I gotta pay more attention to which way the wind's blowing."  
"What do you want? I thought you guys said you were going to stay out of our way."  
"I know, but something came up." It was then that Ed noticed the guilty look in Havoc's eyes.  
"_What_ came up?" The authoritative growl in his tone almost made Havoc jump.  
"You're not gonna like it."  
"Just tell me!"  
Havoc sighed.  
"The Colonel just showed up."

. . .

Well, that's it for this chapter! If you liked it please let me know what you think. If you think it's trash, please tell me I suck so I know I need to work harder (I genuinely can't tell, I just always think everything I write is trash haha). And look out for the next chapter; see you guys then~~


	5. Chapter 5

. . .

Envy hadn't been worried when he'd thought his powers were about to come back at any moment – but now that he was aware of how utterly helpless he was, the news of the Flame Alchemist's arrival terrified him. Yes, he knew how that made him look. And yes, he was acutely aware of just how reliant he was on the Elrics – the _Elrics_, of all people! – to keep him safe right now. But that didn't mean he had to like it.

He had never liked Roy Mustang. The man had always been incredibly difficult, getting in the way of his own work at every opportunity - but this had gotten infinitely worse after Maes Hughes' death. Envy almost_ regretted_ the murder, purely because of the trouble Mustang had caused in the year since then. Between his meddling and the disappearance of the Elrics, the Homunculi had been all but stalled in their efforts to find a Stone. It had gotten to the point where Dante had begun planning to have Mustang mysteriously killed in action.  
As he remembered this, Envy felt a twinge of… something he couldn't quite identify, down in his gut. And for the first time he wondered; _should I say something?_

The idea of betraying Dante still rubbed him the wrong way. He had been forced to change sides for the time being, purely for his own self-preservation – but the itch to return to her was still very much present, and he didn't want to jeopardise any chances he still had left. He still wasn't _quite_ willing to sacrifice everything Dante had to offer him; he would rather keep his options open.  
Still, that uncomfortable feeling wouldn't go away no matter how much he rationalised his choice to stay quiet; indeed, it seemed to only settle _deeper_ into him. In the back of his mind, he wondered if this was just another thing he would have to learn to live with.  
He caught himself glancing over at Alphonse, who offered a smile of reassurance.  
"Try to stay calm, okay?"  
He wasn't sure he could.

Just outside the room, Ed stood waiting as Roy approached. He hoped that he just looked impatient and annoyed rather than nervous, but it was too hard to say for sure. Especially with how damn perceptive the man could be…  
Luckily for the time being, the Colonel's expression seemed neutral enough.  
"Ed," he nodded. Ed groaned.  
"What is this, a surprise party for my birthday? First these guys show up-" he jabbed a finger in Havoc and Breda's general direction, "and now you? What's wrong, don't you trust them to babysit us?"

"I'm sure you're aware that there are Homunculi in the area," Roy began.  
"Yes, I'm _aware_. Your cronies told us. But we haven't seen them at all, we're pretty sure they're not even after us, so why does it matter?"  
"How are you so convinced of that? You can't deny that these creatures seem to have a habit of following you boys around. Aren't you even a little worried that they might be looking for you?"  
Ed shrugged. "I don't see why we should be. Al and I have been off the grid for eleven months, surely they gave up a long time ago. Hell, they probably thought we were dead with all the trouble we get into. You ask me, they're pretty bad at their jobs if they didn't have a backup plan."  
"Either way, their presence here is making me uncomfortable. We know they're up to no good, that much is certain. We _both_ know that you can't do much to protect yourself if they do come after you-"  
"I can do _plenty_ to protect myself," Ed growled. "I'm still not half as useless as you are in the rain."  
Roy ignored his slight. "And Alphonse? He still doesn't know, does he?"  
Ed flinched.

"You do realise that if it comes down to a fight with them, you'll be forced to blow your cover?" Roy continued.  
"I'll figure it out," Ed muttered.  
"You really don't think he'll question it? He's going to notice. You've incorporated too much alchemy into your fighting style for him not to. Unless I'm there. If I fend them off single-handedly with my flame alchemy, he's not going to ask why you didn't step in."  
"Way to make yourself sound like the hero," Ed scoffed.  
"Fine. And I know, I know. Everyone thinks I should just tell him."  
"Hawkeye did want me to remind you on her behalf that you _will_ have to tell him eventually," Roy smirked.  
"But I'm just – I'm not ready to. Not yet."

He looked towards the door, feeling that all too familiar pang of guilt. Roy sighed.  
"Do you think you'll ever be ready? It's not going to get easier the longer you keep it secret. I would imagine quite the opposite."  
"It's going to hurt him, Mustang. He's going to _hate_ it. He- he might even hate himself." He trailed off, the mere thought of Al blaming himself for this was making his gut clench painfully. No. Never.

Roy looked around. "Where is Alphonse, anyway? I was looking forward to seeing him in the flesh."  
"Oh yeah, you haven't seen him since he was in the armour," Ed said, glancing back at the door behind him.  
"I've talked to him on the phone; it's nice to hear his voice without the reverb."  
"Yeah," Ed said, a tiny smile coming to his lips. "It really is. He's, uh-" his eyes almost flicked back to the door, but he managed to restrain himself.  
"He's sleeping right now."

"In the middle of the day?" Roy asked.  
"Well yeah. He's still technically recovering, you know. He hasn't had a body for four years!"  
"Oh, but of course! Forgive me. How is he?"  
"He's doing a lot better, but he still has a long way to go. What he went through… it's not the kind of thing you get over in a day." He leaned back against the door, fighting bad memories of Al screaming in the middle of the night. Of the first few _horrible_ weeks, when Al couldn't even walk or clean himself, when he was throwing up almost everything he ate and Ed had been so _worried_…

"Honestly, he might never really get over it. He's probably going to carry the scars for the rest of his life, just like I am." He raised his automail arm for reference.  
"Just like we _all_ must carry the scars of our pasts," Roy corrected, his voice a more gentle tone than he normally used. "But he _will_ recover, Edward, and so will you. Scars fade."

Roy cleared his throat, returning to his more authoritative voice.  
"In any case, I'll also be staying at the military hotel for the time being. Not just because I want to keep an eye on you, although that is part of the reason," he said, cutting off Ed's retort, "My primary concern is the Homunculi. They're public enemies who have committed several serious crimes, and their movements need to be observed."

He started to walk away. "Should you or Alphonse come into contact with any information regarding the Homunculi, I expect you to come straight to me."  
Ed's nerves peaked. "I don't work for you anymore, Bastard!"  
"No," Roy said, turning back with a smirk, "but you _are_ still Amestrian citizens. You wouldn't want to get caught up with obstruction of justice, would you?"

With that, he left. Ed cursed several times, causing looks of concern from Havoc and Breda.  
"Don't you guys ever knock off?" He grumbled. Breda checked his watch.  
"Our relief's showing up in about twenty minutes, actually."  
"Oh? Who's next on Mustang's roster of torture?"  
"Lets see… That would be Fuery and Armstrong, I think."  
Havoc snorted. "Armstrong? Poor Fuery."  
"Poor _me_," Ed groaned. "Ugh. I think I'm going to have an early night. I really don't feel like having my bones crushed to dust."

He walked back down the hall towards his room, casting one last, worried look at Al's.

. . .

It was four in the morning, by the clock on the wall. Envy listened suspiciously, unsure at first what had woken him so rudely from his slumber. He was anxious that it was the Flame Alchemist.  
He heard groaning on the other side of his room, and almost jumped out of his skin – before he remembered that he was sharing a room.  
_The Pipsqueak's brother. What did he say his name was? Alf- No. Alphonse. That was it. The hell is he doing over there?_

The noise came again, more urgent this time, and Envy suddenly recognised it – it was the sound of distress. Alphonse was in distress.  
The same urge he had felt before came upon him, the strange, uncomfortable feeling in his chest compelling him to _act_. He sat debating it for a while, unsure if he could even stand long enough to reach the boy.

Then, slowly, he got up and headed for the couch; wobbly, but stable enough.

He tripped over something he couldn't see on the way, just barely catching himself on the frame of the couch. Sliding around until he could see Al's face, he started  
"Hey kid, the hell's-"

He froze. Closed his mouth, careful not to make a single noise.  
Alphonse was asleep.  
The more Envy watched him, the more he understood what was happening. Alphonse might have been in dreamland, but he was restless, tossing around, pained noises escaping him every so often. Envy sighed, leaning his head against the couch.  
_A nightmare. Fantastic._

Looked like if Envy wanted any chance of going back to sleep, he was going to have do something about this. Should he wake him up?  
_Ew, no. _He had seen what humans could be like after bad dreams. No thanks.  
But he had to do _something_…

He glanced at the door. Could he make it?

Now more than ever, he wished he had access to his abilities. Shift into the pipsqueak, walk down the hall, it would be so easy. Damnit, why did this have to happen to him?!  
_Face it – if you still had your powers, you wouldn't be here at all_, his mind whispered to him. He brushed it aside. Well he was here now damnit, and he had no choice but to make the best of it.

He made his way to the door and leaned against it, listening as hard as he could. For a moment, he heard nothing. Then, a loud and booming voice. There was a second one too, quiet and timid, but it was easy to tell who the dominant force in this conversation was.  
They didn't sound too close; they certainly weren't right outside the door.

His biggest worry was that Flame Alchemist; who knew where he was? He could be standing right there for all Envy knew. Maybe the pipsqueak had sold him out after all, and Sparky was waiting for him at this very moment.  
Another whimper behind him made his decision.  
_Nope. I am NOT putting up with this all night._

Cringing a little, he cracked the door open as quietly as he possibly could and leaned partially out. Just enough so that he could look around. And there! There were the soldiers, down the end of the hall. Luckily, on the opposite side of where he needed to go, and they seemed distracted enough. He looked down the other side, where he knew the pipsqueak's room was.  
Three doors. It was only three doors down. That wasn't that far, right?  
If he timed it right, he could make it. He was sure. Well, almost sure. Seventy percent. Sixty at the lowest.  
Okay, maybe he _really_ just wanted to go back to sleep.

He waited, watching the soldiers, waiting for his moment. He caught himself subconsciously taking in details of their appearance as he did so – a habit he had picked up for his shape shifting; he was used to memorising people at a single glance. Before he stopped himself he had already noticed the length of the taller man's eyelashes (almost feminine, but not quite), the way the shorter man's glasses sat slightly crooked on his nose, and the fact that the taller man's uniform had been sewn back together several times.  
_Whoa, focus. Got a job to do here._

Finally, his moment came. The taller man turned, backing the shorter man menacingly into a corner as his voice raised. Not taking the time to question what was going on, Envy ran for it.  
Luckily, even without his powers he was nothing if not stealthy. He had always been light on his feet, and managed to make it down to the pipsqueak's door without drawing the attention of the guards.  
_Okay, now what?_

He looked back at the soldiers, who still seemed very distracted, and chanced a light knock on the door.  
He waited. And waited. How long should he wait? How long did it normally take humans to drag themselves out of bed? He couldn't remember.  
Damnit. He hadn't woken up, had he? Envy silently cursed, and despite the pounding of his heart he tried again; knocking as loud as he dared.  
This time, only about a minute passed before the door opened and a _very_ dishevelled Edward spoke.  
"Mustang, I swear to God the hotel had better be on fire-"

It was at that moment he stopped rubbing his eyes and realised who he was talking to.

Envy yelped as he was grabbed by the fabric of his crop top and yanked roughly into the room. He stumbled, trying to regain his fragile balance as Ed closed the door.  
"What the _hell_?! Are you trying to get us all caught?" Edward hissed at him. Envy rolled his eyes.  
"I think what you meant to say is 'thank you', Pip-Edward," he corrected hastily, not wanting Ed to kick up a fuss.  
"And why would I say that?"  
"Because your kid brother's having a nightmare in there, and I risked my ass to come get you instead of just leaving him. Which I easily could have done. I sleep like a baby when humans are having a bad time. So you're welcome."  
_Who are you trying to kid_, his inner voice whispered. He ignored it.

Ed's face immediately changed; the emotion Envy recognised as _worry_ carving itself into every facet of his features.  
"Stay here. I can't risk taking you back to the room right now." With that, Ed left the room.

Envy sighed, dropping onto the couch in this new room. Awesome, now he could get some sleep.  
Weirdly there was something else there; something he couldn't _quite_ pin point, that felt very similar to accomplishment. It was like when he got a mission just right, but… different, somehow.  
He tried to figure out what this strange feeling was, but all too quickly it faded with everything else as he sank into slumber.

. . .

The next morning, Envy awoke (feeling much better rested) to see both brothers standing in front of him. He yawned, and shot them a weak glare.  
"What?"  
"We're trying to figure out if it's worth trying to move you back to Al's room," Ed explained. "Honestly, it might be easier to keep you here."

Something inside him, Envy decided, was _horribly_ uncomfortable with the idea of sharing a room with Edward rather than his brother. He could just imagine how well that would go…

"Alphonse would be switching too, right?"  
"No, that would be too obvious! We can't just randomly switch rooms, they'll want to know why."  
"Maybe we could," Al suggested. "Could always say that I get a better night's sleep in this room for some reason. They'll believe it. Besides, do you really think it's a good idea to have you and Envy in the same room?"  
"What are you saying, Al?"  
"That I get along slightly better with difficult people than you do."

As the brothers argued, Envy pulled one of the couch cushions down over his head and grimaced. Ugh, having to share with the pipsqueak. No good deed went unpunished, he supposed. Maybe he _should_ have let Alphonse continue dreaming…

No, he decided. That feeling he had gotten afterwards had been very pleasant. He wouldn't take it back.

"Okay," Al finally said, raising his voice just enough to cut Ed's ranting off. "You just proved why it's not a good idea to leave you and Envy alone, so the way I see it, we have two options. Either we can wait for a shift change and try to move him then, or you and I switch."  
Ed immediately started shaking his head.  
"I've seen the shift changes; there isn't enough time for us to sneak him through. Mustang must be _really_ strict on them. I don't even know how he got here in first place without being caught!"

"You know if you asked him one day, instead of talking about him right in front of him, you might just find out," Envy said sarcastically.  
Ed flushed, and started stammering out an apology. Rolling his eyes, Envy decided to spare him.  
"I managed to catch a few seconds where they were… distracted, to answer your question. No idea what the short guy did to trigger the taller guy, but he ripped his shirt off and started flexing at him."  
"Sorry you had to see that," Ed said, his tone giving it away that this was a common occurrence.

"Well, that settles it. Unless anyone here feels like triggering another gun show-"  
"Nope," Ed said.  
"Then we're going to have to just switch rooms. Give me the key."  
Al held out his own, Ed reluctantly brought out his, and they traded. Envy couldn't help but notice that Ed still seemed _very_ uncomfortable about the situation.

"Relax, will you?! I haven't murdered him yet. And I don't know why you think I would, when you two are the only thing standing between me and imminent death right now. That would be like you guys straight up admitting to the military that you committed human transmutation."  
"He has had a _lot_ of opportunities," Al agreed. "If he really wanted me dead, he would've tried it by now. Hell, he could've done it _last night_ instead of going to get you."  
Ed sighed, both his hands clenching into fists.  
"Fine. I still don't like it-"  
"We know," both Al _and_ Envy said at the same time.  
"But we did agree to help him, so we need to do whatever we need to do."  
"Besides, we're stuck now," Al said. "If the Colonel finds out _now_ that we've been hiding a Homunculus from him this whole time, he's not going to be happy."  
Ed nodded. Then saw the time.

"Ack! We have to go, Al! We're supposed to be meeting up with Mustang!"  
"Yeah, about that. Maybe I should stay here."  
"Seriously, Al? You're abandoning me in my time of need-"  
"Well _someone_ has to babysit our guest."  
"Hey!" Envy said indignantly.  
"Besides," Al said, "He did say that Lust and Gluttony could find him at any moment. He said something about Gluttony being able to smell him…"

He looked over at Envy, who nodded.  
"That's his power. Aside from the acid spit, I mean. His main functionality is that he has a really good sense of smell; he's like a bloodhound."  
"If he can smell Envy, don't you think he can smell you too?" Ed said. "And if they know the famous Elric brothers are with Envy, don't you think that'll make them _more_ worried? We don't exactly have good history with them."  
"Ah," Al pointed out, "but they _won't_ know the famous Elric Brothers are with him. Not if it's only me."  
"How's that?" Ed asked. Al said nothing, only waiting for Ed to realise the obvious.  
He could see the exact moment it happened, Ed's entire face changing as if he had just discovered the real secret to human transmutation.

"Oh shit."  
"Yeah, there it is," Al said with a smile. "Go on Ed, really. We'll be fine here. Worst case scenario, we have our guard detail; I'll just have to figure out a way to hide Envy from them."  
"What do I tell Mustang? He really wants to see you."  
"Just tell him I'm sick or something. He'll believe it; my immune system's probably trashed."

. . .

And it was exactly that excuse that Ed ended up utilising as he sat in the hotel restaurant with Roy Mustang, noting the increasingly disappointed expression on the older man's face.  
"You boys sure you're not lying to me about Alphonse being back in his real body?" Roy joked. "I mean I still have yet to see it for myself."  
"Hey, he can't help that his immune system got wrecked! Trust me, he wanted to see you too. He hates that there's still so much he can't do; it's killing him."  
"I imagine it would; it's been almost a full year. I would be frustrated too."

There was a brief break where Ed shovelled food into his mouth. "So why did you want to meet up, anyway?"  
"I wanted to keep you updated on what's going on. I know you're not in the military anymore, but you _are_ a known point of interest for the… criminals in the area. It's only fair that you know what's happening."  
"Is that your way of saying you think of us as _friends,_ Mustang?"

Roy realised too late the trap he had fallen into.

"Fullmetal, don't you dar-"  
"You _care_ about us! Awwwww, who knew the famous Flame Alchemist was such a softy?"  
"Maybe I shouldn't tell you," Roy pretended to speculate with a grin. "After all, if they kill you I won't have to put up with your heinous attitude anymore."  
"Okay, okay." Ed laid off the teasing, and his countenance sobered. "What were you trying to tell me?"

Roy too adopted a more serious expression, leaning in slightly closer and dropping his voice so that no one else could hear.  
"I've getting getting reports of a strange, dark haired woman and an overweight man wandering around. That, you already knew. But I've been watching them, and I have new information: they've started asking questions about the recent doings of the Fullmetal Alchemist."

Ed suddenly felt very cold.

"What kind of questions?"  
"Nothing that gives away much," Roy said. "They're mostly just asking what you've been up to, whether you're still in the military, where you've been for the last year."  
"And what kind of answers are they getting?"  
"Nothing serious right now, just what the public knows. You retired from the military after Maes Hughes' murder, and you haven't really been in the public eye since. It was pretty obvious that you two were close to the Hughes' family, so most people are just assuming the events are connected."  
"I mean, they're not wrong," Ed pointed out.

He suddenly became very aware of the fact that Al was alone with Envy, and leaned forwards urgently as his heart rate soared.  
"What about Al? No one's said anything about the fact that the Fullmetal Alchemist's younger brother stopped wearing his armour, right?!"  
Roy shook his head. "Not yet; don't worry, I've been listening out for that too. Honestly, I don't think most people even know who he is."

"Good," Ed said, leaning back. "That's how we're trying to keep it; at least for the time being. With him still recovering, and my… _condition_, the last thing we need right now is for old enemies to start thinking it's a good idea to kidnap him."  
"What do you mean 'how you're trying to keep it'?"  
"Well we've had a couple of fake identities for him, just in case - but I usually don't even have to introduce him at all. He's always been so quiet, and now that he's not a seven-foot suit of armour, he just kind of… fades into the background most of the time. Especially next to me, no one really pays attention to him anymore."

He shrugged. "It does suck for him sometimes, but we've both agreed that it's for the best right now. Besides, he likes it better than being treated like a freak all the time. He said it's nice that he can disappear off the radar sometimes, instead of people always being so aware of his presence."  
"I can definitely understand that," Roy agreed. "Though at the same time, knowing Alphonse, I can't help but wonder if he's _really_ that okay with it."  
"Yeah, that's my concern too," Ed admitted with a sigh. "Sometimes I wish he'd just talk to me."

"That's hypocritical," Roy pointed out. "You don't talk to _him_."  
"Yeah, yeah, I know. I need to tell him."  
"Sooner rather than later," Roy insisted. "I don't want to sound like a nagging parent, Edward, I really don't. But it's only going to get worse the longer you let this continue. If you think he'll be angry about it, he's going to be even _more_ angry if he finds out you've also been lying to him."  
"I know that."

They fell into a tense silence.

"Alright, I'll stop lecturing you now," Roy said. "I'll admit that it's probably not my business anyway; you boys have done a good enough job taking care of yourselves so far."  
"Yet you seem to love shoving your nose where it doesn't belong," Ed bit back, though not entirely seriously.

. . .

Meanwhile, Al was settled on the couch reading a book while Envy stood, pacing back and forth -well, as well as he could given the circumstances - with an air of anxiety.  
Looking up as Envy's shadow passed over him yet again, Al sighed and sat up.

"You know, there's nothing we can do right now."  
"We should at least have a plan."  
"I agree. But we can't make one until Ed's back."  
"Why?"  
"Because good plans require the input of _all_ involved parties," Al explained patiently. "What happens if we make a plan, and then Ed gets back and immediately says 'no, that won't work and here's why'? We've just wasted all that time."  
"We're wasting time _now_," Envy complained.

Al got up, causing Envy's anxiety to spike. "Where are you going?"  
"Relax, I'm coming back. I'm just checking who our guard is right now, and who our next guard's going to be. That might be important when we do get to the planning stage."  
He made it to within two feet of the door, then paused to readjust his fringe, which had fallen into his eyes.

That brief pause went on to become the _only_ reason Alphonse Elric survived that day. In years to come, the boys would attribute this to the famous 'Elric Luck' that had so often saved them from many a tragic end to their journey.  
For mere milliseconds after he stopped moving, so fast he could barely register it, there was a thin, black blade less than an inch away from his face.

Both people present in the room went dead still; Al still trying to catch his breath from the literal centimetre away he had just been from death. Envy's eyes raced back and forth as he put the pieces together, figuring out what must have happened-

Al was faster.  
"_Get down!_"

They both dropped to the floor as several more blades pierced the wooden door, some of them hitting the wall behind Envy.  
"Damnit, I thought you said we had a guard," Envy swore at Al.  
"We should!"  
"Well where the hell are they?!"

Al's breaths were still coming shakily, as his mind raced to come up with something, _anything_. Lust hadn't broken through the door yet, but he didn't know how much time they had. Gluttony had acid spit; how long would it take to burn through? He found himself calculating how long it had taken to decimate his armour body, transferring those calculations to wood…  
They didn't have long.

"We can't rely on them. we have to assume for now that something happened to them. We have to assume that Ed and Mustang won't make it back in time," he met Envy's eyes.  
"We have to assume that we're all we've got."  
"Then we're fucking doomed."

"Maybe not- aaagh!" He rolled backwards as he saw Lust's nails retract from the door, just _barely_ making it out of her reach before she struck again. "Maybe not. There has to be something. Anything!"  
"What?!" Envy all but shouted. "What can we do, Alphonse?! You're still recovering from the armour, I'm still recovering from whatever the hell happened to me; unless you're about to tell me that you just happen to have a gun with you-"

He stopped, noticing the way that Al's eyes had just widened.  
"You _don't_ have a gun with you, right?"  
"Don't need one," Al said.  
Those three words were enough for Envy to understand.  
"What do you need?"

Lust's nails retracted from the door once again, and both of them tensed. But nothing came. Finally, Al realised what was happening.  
"I bet she's asking Gluttony to burn through the door. Quick! I need metal; any metal you can find will do, but the stronger the better."  
Envy had already started moving the second the word 'metal' had left Al's mouth; Al himself now did the same, rifling through everything they had available to them. Envy threw a fork at him from what must've been Ed's most recent room service order; it just barely missed taking out Al's eye. Al picked it up, putting it on the coffee table with a couple of tiny screws he had found.

A thought came to him. He ran for Ed's suitcase, pulling out all the carefully stacked clothes inside, tossing aside Ed's journal.  
There! He'd found it. Just as he was coming back up to the table, Envy too arrived with what looked like the metal parts from a curtain rack. Al noticed him looking over his shoulder curiously.  
"Ed always keeps scrap around for his automail," he said by way of explanation.  
"Are you like your brother, or do you need something to draw with?"  
"I don't remember the Gate, no," Al said, fiddling in his pocket and pulling out some chalk. "So it's lucky I carry this with me."

He knelt down and started etching, his past with combat alchemy making him surprisingly fast and accurate. Envy half sat, half fell to the ground next to him, his violet eyes locked on the door as he started to see the beginnings of Gluttony's acid bubbling through. He was just about to tell Al to hurry the hell up when a bright blue light flashed in his peripheral vision.

Seconds later, Al threw something to him. Envy barely caught it, recognising once he had it in his hands that it was a sword of sorts; though it was slightly shorter than normal, likely to conserve materials. Not long after that, Al had a weapon of his own and was rising to his feet.  
"It's not enough," Envy said even as he followed Al's lead. Al shook his fringe out of his face again, taking a deep breath as they watched the door.  
"It's enough to make sure we don't go down without a fight."

Envy looked at him, and nodded once. They waited, letting the Homunculi come to them, standing ready. As the door lost more of its structural integrity, they could now hear Gluttony's voice.  
"He's definitely in here, Lust! I can smell him! I can smell someone else too, but I don't know who it is!"  
Envy's sword wavered. Al caught it out of the corner of his eye and turned to face him.

"Envy."  
He shook his head. "I don't know if I can do it."  
It was the first time the Homunculus had openly admitted to any kind of weakness in front of Al, let alone an emotional one. He had to admit, he didn't quite know how to respond.  
"There have been a lot of things I didn't know if I could do. Ed, too. I didn't know if I could survive in the armour, if I could even stay _sane_ in there. He didn't know if he could go through with the automail surgery. If he could ever walk again. Neither of us knew if we would be able to burn down our mother's house."  
"But you did it all anyway."  
"Exactly. Because we had to; and sometimes you just have to do what you have to do."

Envy scoffed.  
"Damned if I'm ever going to be weaker than a human. _Especially_ if I'm about to die."  
"That's the spirit."  
With that, the door finally collapsed under its own weight. Al and Envy now had nothing standing between them and the Homunculi.

. . .

The second the door fell, Lust opened her mouth to speak – only for her jaw to drop in utter confusion at the scene that stood before her. Not only was Envy alive, unbound, and seemingly totally unharmed – he was with a human, and it looked like they were on the same side. More disarming was the fact that Envy was armed and looked ready to fight.

"Envy. Our master's been searching for you. Do you feel like explaining what's happening here, and where you've been this whole time?" Was all she could say as her mind whispered one mantra on repeat.  
_Please no. Please no. Please no._ Images of Greed flashed through her mind, the older brother she had never had the chance to meet on positive terms.

Envy flinched a little under her stare, became just a little uncomfortable - but not enough. There was something new inside him, a determination she had never seen before.  
"Yeah, about that. I'm not coming home."  
Though she would never admit it, or let it show on her face, she felt as though one of her own spears had gone through her chest.

"I strongly urge you to reconsider."  
"I can't." And it did seem as though there was a level of regret; Lust didn't know what, but _something_ was genuinely making him feel as though this was a choice he had to make. The only choice he _could_ make.  
Still, her – their – master's orders were resolute.

"Then you know what must happen," she said. Envy sighed, a weary sound.  
"You have a choice, Lust. You know that, right?"  
"No I don't."  
"Yes you do. You can walk away and tell Dante you never found me. Or that I died. Hell, that's not too far from the truth. She wouldn't even expect a body."  
And truthfully, she was tempted. Envy was right; she could just leave and pretend none of this ever happened. If she said she hadn't been able to find him, Dante wouldn't question it.  
But it wasn't _Dante_ running into Envy on the street that she was worried about.  
"You know better than anyone; I can't do that."

Envy raised his weapon. "So then. This is how it has to be."  
"This is how it has to be," Lust agreed.

She sent out her spears, aiming straight for the red nodes she knew would weaken Envy enough to capture him. But he was ready for that trick, catching her with his own blade. For a moment they stood, locked in a battle of strength. Then like a flash, Envy ducked under and around her blades.  
"You really don't want to do this, Lust. I have at least four hundred years of experience and practice on you." He dodged her next strike, landing on his knees and parrying her again. "Do you really think you can beat me?"

Nearby, Al was fending off Gluttony as best he could; he was trying his hardest to keep his distance, well aware of the creature's deadly saliva. It was hard not to be; Gluttony was currently drooling at the prospect of his next snack, leaving tiny holes in the floor wherever he went.

Al figured as long as he could watch out for that, he would be alright. Gluttony as a whole wasn't much of a threat; he was slow and bumbling, already Al had managed to chop off his right arm twice and his left once. It was that _mouth_ he was worried about, as well as Gluttony's massive, hulking weight. If he got on top of Al, it was over.  
"Remember," he called out, "all we have to do is wear out their red stones!"

Upon hearing his voice, both Lust and Gluttony froze. Lust turned towards him, her eyes narrowing.  
"You… Where have I heard that voice be-"  
She gasped and choked as Envy's sword went straight through her chest, falling limp as her wound started to spark. Envy started trying to pull the weapon back out, using his foot against her stomach as leverage.  
"You think I don't know that?" He shouted back.  
He got the weapon back _just_ as Lust came to, coming forwards for another strike. This one went straight down her left shoulder, severing the arm. She cried out.

"See? I told you. Four hundred years of practice, versus… how long has it been? Thirteen, fourteen years?"  
"Long enough," Lust gasped through the pain, using her remaining arm to slash at him. He dodged, barely, but her swing caught the blade between her fingers and yanked it out of his arms. It clattered to the ground somewhere on the other side of the room.

Al leapt to the side as Gluttony charged him, trying to avoid being trapped in a corner. He started forwards to chance another strike, but was forced to back off as Gluttony approached; the drooling had worsened, and he was afraid to get too close.  
He had managed to avoid injuries thus far, but he was worried. His body still wasn't used to such rough handling, and far too quickly he was already starting to tire. He knew Envy couldn't be much better off in his current state.  
He braced himself for the fact he had known all along: they were probably going to lose this fight.

Suddenly, his world caught on fire. Lust and Gluttony were both caught in the blaze, consumed to ash in minutes.  
"Damnit, be _careful_! Al's in there!" And Al recognised the voice.  
"Brother?"  
He looked and confirmed his wildest hopes; Ed was standing at the door with a worried expression, Mustang by his side with his gloved hand extended. Al's mind flooded with relief, immediately followed by panic.

Ed seemed to understand his concerns, nodding a little.

Behind him, Lust and Gluttony reformed. They turned, angry and seemingly ready to fight – only to back off a few steps as they saw Mustang get ready to snap again.  
"Gluttony, we need to go," Lust said.  
"But what about-"  
"Now!" And just like that, they were gone. Mustang pursued them for a few steps, sending several bursts of flame in their direction, but missed every time.

Ed stepped into the now fire damaged room, coughing from the smoke as he pulled Al to his feet.  
"Where's Envy?"  
Al turned, afraid that Envy could have been caught in Mustang's attack – only to see him scrunched up in the corner behind the bed.  
"Here. I was trying to make sure your Flame Alchemist didn't see me. I don't think that would work out very well for _any_ of us."  
"Nice hiding spot; _we_ almost didn't see you," Ed said. "Are you hurt?"  
He shook his head. "Almost. I got cocky; should've been more careful."  
He stood up, stepping towards them.

"Step back, boys! Looks like I missed one."  
Everyone in the room jumped at Roy's voice behind them, turning to see him back in the doorway – and now aiming his fury at Envy.

Envy chuckled nervously, hoping he wasn't about to be set on fire.  
"Hi."

. . . 


	6. Chapter 6

. . .

Envy raised his hands in surrender, keeping his eyes on the Flame Alchemist.  
"Well, well. I had reports of your friends in the area, but I had no idea you were here too, Homunculus. I guess I shouldn't be surprised; you do like to take the forms of others, don't you?"  
Roy looked briefly to Ed and Al. "Well, at least we caught this one. This won't take long."  
"Wait!"

Roy's dark eyes hit Ed in surprise. Al took the opportunity to move backwards so that he was directly in front of Envy. He was hoping that Roy wouldn't be able to hit Envy with his flames if there was a civilian standing too close.  
"If you have other ideas of what we should do with him, I'm all ears." Roy said, addressing Ed.  
"He's…" Ed's eyes flicked back and forth, stress building within him as he realised the gig was well and truly up.  
"He's with us, Colonel."  
Roy's eyes darkened.  
"What are you talking about? He's the enemy!"  
"Actually," Envy started. Roy shot him a glare so deadly he thought it best to close his mouth.

"We promised him amnesty," Ed argued.  
"That's not your right anymore, as you love to constantly remind me."  
"I may not be a State Alchemist anymore, but I still see it as my duty to help those who need it! That's not just a soldier's job; it's a basic responsibility of all humans!"  
"He's _not_ human though!" Roy reminded him. "He's a Homunculus."

"Would you say the same thing about Ishbalans?" Al asked quietly. Roy sputtered.  
"No! Of course not! But that's different-"  
"How is it so different, Colonel? You had to kill Ishbalans en masse during the war because _they_ were on the wrong side of history. They also have Scar in their ranks, who is arguably one of the biggest threats you face on a daily basis. Does that mean you would strike down any Ishbalan you saw on the street now?"  
"No!"  
"Why not?"  
"Because…" Roy trailed off.

"Because not all Ishbalans are the same," Al finished for him. "That's what you were about to say. What makes you think that can't be true of Homunculi, too?"  
Roy still didn't look like he was about to back down. Ed picked up where his brother had left off.  
"Tell me Colonel, how are Homunculi created?"  
"Is this an alchemy lesson, Edward?"  
"Just answer the damn question."  
"Fine," Roy sighed. "A Homunculus is created when an alchemist tries to bring back the dead."  
"Now tell me; do you honestly think those alchemists are _trying_ to create evil? Do you think they program something into the Homunculi that makes them inherently bad?"  
"No," Roy admitted, now seeing where this was going.  
"So how can you tell us with certainty that all Homunculi _are_ inherently evil?"

Roy didn't have an answer for that. His gloved hand wavered just slightly.

"All they know is what they've been taught," Al added on. "What was it _you_ told us, Envy? You're born, not made. That's what you said."  
He turned back to Roy.  
"They come into this world just like newborns, Colonel. Just like us. If all they're taught is hatred and violence, that's all they're going to understand. And considering they're created from the failed attempt to bring a loved one back, I can imagine that's how a _lot_ of them start their lives. With fear, rejection, and hate. That's probably why most of the ones we've met have turned out the way they have. But who's to say that they can't be taught something else?"

Roy groaned.  
"And what about the fact that this particular one tried to kill you, Alphonse? Did you hit your head and forget about that? Argue all you want about whether Homunculi _can_ be good people; I'm sure you're right and there are some out there. But this one made his choice a long time ago!"

Envy decided to use his ace in the hole. As little as he wanted to, he had no other choice.

"She's going to kill you, Flame Alchemist."  
Roy narrowed his eyes. "What? Is that a threat?"  
"No," Envy said half honestly. "It's a gesture of good will. Our master is planning your death as we speak. She's going to have you sent up North to 'de-escalate a potential uprising'. While you're there, you're going to be hit by a stray bullet. The plan is that you'll die on the scene, and your death will cause an outright war. She's hoping that she'll be able to use that war to create a stone."

Everyone fell silent. Roy's breaths started to become shallow. He lowered his arm, now taking a _much_ more sincere interest in the Homunculus.  
"How do you know this?"  
"Because I was supposed to help," Envy admitted. "Of course, that's going to be a little difficult now. I don't have access to my powers right now, and I'm sure neither of us plans to go North anymore."  
"Why does she want me dead?"  
"Because you started to interfere too heavily in her plans. She wants you out of the way."

"One more question, Homunculus."  
"I have nothing better to do than answer it," he shrugged.  
"How was she going to have me sent up North? Is she military?"  
Envy paused for a long time. Seriously thought it through.  
"I can't say who, but she has someone on the inside."  
"Someone higher than me, who could order me around," Roy speculated. Envy nodded.  
"_Way_ higher than you. As in, you could be court martialled if you refuse to follow an order."

Roy snapped his fingers, and Envy flinched as he felt a wave of heat. But it wasn't _him_ the Flame Alchemist had chosen to set on fire; instead, the already damaged couch next to him caught alight.  
"Damnit!" Roy swore. He turned around and leaned on the wall outside the room for several minutes.  
When he returned, he had seemingly regained his composure.  
"Edward, Alphonse. This… creature clearly has a great deal of valuable information. I can't risk executing him right now. It seems like you get your wish, for the time being; he will be spared."

Everyone took a deep breath.  
"_But_," Roy added, "We just can't allow him to run amok either. He's a wanted criminal. Since you're a retired State Alchemist, Edward, I am officially leaving you in charge for now. You're responsible for him, and for making sure he doesn't cause any trouble."  
"What happens if I don't want to," Ed moaned. "I'm not a soldier anymore, you can't make me!"  
"Then I'll have no choice," Roy said. They didn't need clarification on what he meant.

"Well we can't stay here, that much is for sure. Not now that the other Homunculi have found us."  
"So what do you propose?"  
"Let us take him back to Resembool. They'll never find us there."  
"Edward, I don't know-"  
"There's nothing there, Mustang. You want me to keep him out of trouble, right? Resembool's the _sheep_ town; what trouble could he possibly get into there?"  
Envy's mind immediately started delving into all the literal _hundreds_ of ways he could cause trouble in some stupid sheep town. If only he had access to his powers…  
"Fine," Roy said. "I'll allow it. But don't think I won't be checking in."

"Whoa, what the hell happened here?"  
Roy spun around, absolutely _furious_, to face Jean Havoc. Envy shuddered for the man.  
"And just where the _hell_ were you two?! Did you think I was kidding when I said the Elric brothers needed to be constantly supervised? Did you take that as a friendly suggestion rather than an order?"  
Falman put his hands up. "I had nothing to do with this, I was told my shift started now." He shot Havoc a glare. Havoc laughed sheepishly.  
"Oh come on Boss, I've had this date set up for months! You knew about it. I figured they would be fine for an hour or so…"  
"Well they weren't! I'll have you know Alphonse almost _died_ while you were on your little unscheduled break-"

Ed and Al shared a glance as the men argued, understanding passing between them even without a word spoken.  
This wasn't going to be easy.

. . .

Well, Envy had to say: he wasn't all too impressed by the Sheep Town so far. They hadn't been kidding, there were a lot of sheep. And that was about it.  
He followed the boys up the stone path (it was times like this, he questioned with a grimace, he wondered why he didn't wear shoes in his main form) towards a rather large house. The Pipsqueak knocked, and the door opened a moment later.

"Sorry, we're all booked out-_ED! AL!_" The brothers were tackled to the ground by a mass of blonde hair, the three of them laughing merrily. Envy suppressed a scoff, simply waiting impatiently.  
They got up eventually, the tackler being what Envy now recognised as a young girl.  
_Blonde – slightly lighter shade than the Pipsqueak. Comes about halfway down her back. When she smiles she gets a dimple on her left cheek. Really muscular for a girl, I wonder if she works out-_

_Stop it, Envy!_ He chided himself. He really hadn't noticed how often he did this until he started trying to stop himself.

It was then that the girl's attention fell onto him.  
"Uh, who's this?"  
Envy snickered. "Good luck explaining this one, Elrics."  
Ed glared at him before stammering out the basics to Winry. She crossed her arms.  
"Are you serious? You brought a Homunculus here? Have you lost your mind?"  
"We didn't really have a choice," Al said. "Who knows how long we're going to be saddled with him for, so unless you're happy to not see us again for an indeterminate amount of time-"  
"Well that's not really new from you boys. But I guess I understand. Fine, he can stay here for now. As long as he doesn't cause any trouble with Granny."

Envy's ears pricked up at that last name. Granny? So there was a fragile old lady in the house… Interesting.  
_No! Stop it! You don't have your powers and they have alchemy! Don't do anything stupid._  
He sighed. Someday he'd be allowed to have fun again…

A hand was thrust in his face, and he looked up to see the girl smiling brightly at him.  
"Winry Rockbell. It's nice to meet you."  
"Envy," he returned, shaking her hand and trying not to look like he was squashing a bug while doing so.

She, to her credit, took his bad attitude with grace and poise. "I know you've been through hell and back recently. I'm sure a relaxing retreat from the city is all you need to get back on your feet." With that she stomped away, grabbing Edward by the ear as she left.  
"You come with me. I want to make sure you haven't destroyed my masterpiece!"  
"Masterpiece?" Envy queried, looking at Alphonse.  
"Ah. Yeah. She's his automail mechanic."  
A lightbulb went off.  
"Oh, _She's_ his girly-friend!"

There was a pause before Alphonse burst out laughing.  
"Whatever you do, do _not_ let him hear you say that!"  
"What? Why not?!"  
"It's kind of a sensitive subject. Come on, let's go inside and get settled."  
"Humans and their rules," he muttered as he followed the boy inside.

The house was nice enough, he would admit that. With a warm, cheery atmosphere and nice furniture, it easily beat out most of the dingy places he had stayed in. Winry, who currently had Edward sitting on the floor with his shirt off, saw Envy come in and yelled out at him.  
"I'm sorry about this, but I'll have to set you up in one of the patient rooms! We don't have much space. I'll get most of the medical crap out of your way as soon as I'm done with this idiot." She pointed her screwdriver at Edward.  
"Winry…" Edward complained in a low tone.

"Oh it's no trouble, Winry," Al said. "Which room? I'll get started with the small stuff while you're working."  
"Oh Al, you're such a sweetie! Let's see… Let's put him down the hall on the left. There should be a tool box somewhere on the floor, you can just shove all the tools and screws and stuff in there."  
"Got it." Alphonse headed in the direction pointed and Envy, not knowing what else to do, followed him.

The room was small and smelled like antiseptic – but it wasn't too bad, he conceded. At first he had thought he probably wouldn't spend too much time in here anyway – Homunculi didn't really _have_ to sleep – but after seeing the town, he might have to readjust that. There _really_ wasn't much to do around here.

He watched Alphonse start picking things up and throwing them in the box Winry had described.  
"You know, you could help if you feel like it."  
"Why would I do that?"  
"Okay, whatever," Alphonse sighed. "Do whatever makes you happy, Envy."  
"Anythi-"  
"As long as it's _legal_," Alphonse corrected, clearly seeing his mistake. "Ed and I are responsible for you, and I am _not_ going to prison over you."  
"Ugh, fine. You guys are so boring. Though I shouldn't be surprised, seeing where you grew up."

He wandered around, seeing some photos tacked to the wall he decided to investigate. He heard Alphonse behind him.  
"Oh, those are all from when we were kids! Winry keeps them all over the house. I think she likes to remember when things were simpler."  
"You don't say…" He looked them over. Most of them were just of the children; clearly the Elrics and that Winry girl, they couldn't be anyone else. Boring, boring, boring.

But then he saw this one photo sitting right in the centre. One particular photo that made a whirlwind of emotions hit him all at once. Anger, the all-familiar envy, and something he recognised as _pain_, even though it wasn't at all physical. Something else, he couldn't pinpoint. But it was making the back of his eyes burn and the anger rise to the surface, overcoming all the other emotions…

"Hey, are you okay?" Alphonse asked.  
It all boiled over.

"Oh please, as if you care! You standing there acting all goody goody, pretending to give a shit – it makes me sick to my stomach!"  
"Wha-"  
"I'm better than all of you! Better than you'll ever be! You stole what was mine, what _should_ have been mine, and you still have the balls to think you're the heroes of this story?! God, you're so self-righteous!"  
"Envy-"  
"Just leave me alone, you worthless worm!" He stormed out of the room, out of the house, with no idea where he was going. He just needed to get _away_.

Al stood where Envy had left him, completely confused. He heard footsteps and tensed; worried Envy was coming back to make things physical – only to see a bewildered Ed.  
"The Hell just happened?! Are you alright?"  
"Yeah, I mean _I'm_ fine…"  
"What do you mean?"  
"It was Envy. I don't know what happened, he just exploded. He was fine five minutes ago."  
"I mean what were you expecting, Al? He hates us, remember? He's probably frustrated that he's stuck here with us."

Al's eyes fell to the wall.  
"No, I don't think that's it."  
Ed's brow knit together.  
"Why not?"  
Al pointed. "He was looking at the pictures. It was something about the pictures that triggered him. He was totally okay before that."  
"Aren't they all just of us? No, wait!" Ed walked over to the wall, taking one specific picture off it. He held it out to Al.  
It was the one 'family picture' the Elrics had ever taken. The picture with both of their parents in it as well as them. The only one they had successfully taken before their family had been split apart forever.  
"Envy, huh?"

Al raised his brow.  
"The Homunculi are all named after sins, right?" Ed explained. "So far, they've all been pretty obvious. Greed wanted what he didn't have. Gluttony's always hungry. And Lust, well… let's just say that one's obvious before she opens her mouth. But not Envy. He's always kept it pretty close to the chest."  
"He's older, too," Al pointed out. "He mentioned that he's four hundred and something, and Lust's only around our age. That's a pretty big gap for there to be no other Homunculi in between. What do you want to bet he's one of the oldest, if not _the_ oldest?"  
"Which means…"  
"Well the naming scheme had to start _somewhere_, right? If Envy was younger than the others you could just argue that he got his name to keep the theme going. But if he's one of the first, that means he was named that for a reason."  
Ed pointed at the photo again. "Which makes the real question…. What he is jealous of?"

. . .

Ed was both surprised and amused by where he ended up finding Envy. The Homunculus was leaning against a tree, staring at the water.  
"You know, whenever Al and I fight, this is exactly the same spot he goes to."  
"I don't care what your dumbass brother does when he's upset."

Ed decided to try a different tactic.  
"How do you know Hohenheim?"  
_That_ had an effect. Every single muscle in Envy's body tensed.  
"Who?"  
"Don't play dumb with me. I saw the photo you were looking at, and he's the only person in it who I believe for a second that you've met before."

Envy curled in on himself tighter, still refusing to look at Ed.  
"I don't want to talk about it."  
"Look, I'm trying to help you."  
"I don't _want_ your help, Pipsqueak."

Ed took a deep breath, closing his eyes and biting down on the words he wanted to shriek.  
"Fine." So instead of saying anything else, he simply sat down nearby.  
Envy looked over at him with a strange expression; it was as if he couldn't decide whether he wanted to be annoyed, confused, or angry.  
"What are you doing?"  
"I am so not leaving you by yourself out here."  
"why, you still think I'm gonna go on a murderous rampage first chance I get?"  
"Among other reasons," Ed said evasively. "If you want to sit out here, fine. But you're stuck with me."  
Envy sighed, trying to ignore the tiny spark of warmth that was lighting up inside him.  
"Fine."

They sat in silence for a time, watching the sun sink lower in the sky as the evening chill started to set in.  
"You're right, I know him. Or, _knew_, rather."  
Ed perked up, looking back over at Envy. The Homunculus was still staring into the water, seemingly determined to avoid catching Ed's eye.  
"'knew'?  
"I only knew him for a short time. Back when I was…" He swallowed the bile threatening to make an appearance.  
"When I was _human_."

Ed's curiosity was instantly piqued. Envy had _never_ talked about this before; in fact, he was fairly certain he had never heard _any_ Homunculus talk about it.  
"Wait, you mean you have… memories? From the human you were meant to be?"  
"The human I _was_," Envy corrected.  
"That's not how it works. You're an imitation, not the real thing. The dead can't be brought back to life."  
Envy paused, seemingly thinking his response through.

"I understand why you'd want that to be true. Seems your stupid brother did manage to instil _some_ empathy in me after all, damnit."  
"I wouldn't get too excited," Ed grumbled. "You've still got a long way to go."  
"Whatever, Pipsqueak. Anyway, I remember being human as if it was me. So as far as I'm concerned, those are _my_ memories."  
"Okay fine, so how did you know him?"  
"Not telling."  
"What?! You can't bring something like that up and then not explain!"  
"Yes I can, and I am. Besides, I only brought it up because _you_ asked."

Ed glared at him.  
"Trust me Pipsqueak, neither of us is ready to have that conversation yet."  
"You've said that before. Why do you feel that way?"  
Envy sighed, rolling his eyes and finally meeting Ed's with an air of irritation.  
"Always with the interrogations. Look, once I say it, I can't take it back. It's out there forever. And it's going to change a whole lot of stuff, in a whole lot of ways that are going to make all of us really uncomfortable. Would you agree that our relationship is already on shaky ground?"  
"That's a kind way of putting it."  
"Exactly. So I'd rather avoid rocking the boat right now. I know," he said before Ed could answer, "It's shocking me too. Usually I'm the one _trying_ to capsize everyone. But my own ass is at stake here, and I like my ass right where it is."

"And your little outburst?" Ed pointed out. "If you wanted to avoid rocking the boat, that was the wrong way to go about it. Consider the boat well and truly rocked."  
To his credit, Envy seemed almost… ashamed.  
"I couldn't help it; I get that way sometimes. That's just who I am."  
"Does it have to do with your sin?"  
Envy raised an eyebrow at him.  
"You know, it's not that hard to figure it out. I _have_ met several of your partners. After Homunculus number three, you start to see a pattern."  
"They're not my partners anymore, remember? We've kinda hit the point of no return there."  
"Okay, so what would you call them?"

Ed paused as a memory came back to him.  
"Greed called it a 'sibling disagreement' once. Is that how you see them, or just him?"  
Envy scrunched his nose a little in thought; it was strikingly similar to the way Al looked when he was studying.  
"I guess so. There always was kind of a family dynamic there. Ha! Maybe I'm more like him than I thought."  
Ed didn't bother to question who Envy was talking about. He figured he meant Greed, based on the tone. But at the moment, he was more focused on the fact that he had finally gotten Envy to calm down and act like a semi reasonable person again. He stood up.

"You ready to come back to the house yet?"  
"What if I don't wanna?"  
"Then I'll make you; you're still my charge, remember?"  
Envy laughed wickedly, standing. "You can't."  
"What do you mean I-" Ed's blood froze solid.

"You know."  
"Please," Envy said, "I've known for ages."  
"_How_?!"  
"Back at the hotel, when Lust and Gluttony showed up. You thought your flashy Flame Alchemist would distract everyone, didn't you? You thought no one would notice that you were standing there doing nothing while he did all the hard work."  
"I didn't need to do anything; you saw how fast he got the situation under control."  
Envy shook his head with the closest thing to a genuine smile Ed had ever seen.  
"I know you too well by now. Your brother was in danger and you did _nothing_. That's not you."

He started walking, leaving Ed behind for several seconds before he ran to catch up with him.  
"Hey! Where are you going?"  
"You wanted me to go back to the house, right? I'm going back to the house."  
"But that makes no sense! If you knew all this time-"  
"I _told_ you, I have no interest in killing you right now. It doesn't end well for me, so I'm not gonna do it. Do you believe me yet?"  
For several minutes, Ed was in stunned silence. Then a chuckle escaped him.  
"Okay, fine. I guess I have to take your word for it."

. . .

They eventually made it back to the house, but not before it had gotten dark. Ed sighed, realising first that he was late for dinner, and second how much trouble he was going to be in with Winry and Pinako.  
"What did I do this time?" Envy snarked. Ed shook his head.  
"Not you."  
"Then what?"  
"Suffice it to say, you're about to get one hell of a show." The near permanent bump on his head had already started to hurt, as if in agreement.

Envy was first to the door, swinging it open without much of a care. He took exactly two steps into the room – and froze dead in his tracks.  
Understanding immediately that something was wrong, and terrified that Envy was about to lose his cool for the second time that day, Ed pushed past him to try and get between him and whoever the hell he had a problem with _this_ time.  
Everyone was sitting at the table. Winry and Pinako were thoroughly engaged in conversation with what looked like a guest. Everything seemed pleasant enough; for a moment, Ed couldn't figure out what was wrong with this picture.  
Then he noticed Al.

His brother was sitting at the same table, but slightly further away. His expression was… complicated, to say the least. It looked like a mixture between anger, confusion, joy, and worry. Ed didn't think he had ever seen him look so conflicted about how he should feel. He had also never seen him so uncharacteristically antisocial. He looked as though he was sitting only as close as he needed to so as not to be rude, but would much rather be alone.  
Finally looking over and seeing Ed, he watched as Ed raised his brows in a silent question; _what's wrong_. Al _very_ intentionally flicked his eyes over at the 'guest', just once, in answer.

Ed followed Al's line of sight – and finally realised what had been bothering him in the back of his mind since he had walked in.  
The guest was a man; a tall one, with broad shoulders. He also had a long, blond ponytail trailing down his back.

Just as Ed started to put the pieces together, the man spoke over his shoulder at Al.  
"Alphonse, is everything alright? You seem distracted. Of course, I understand this is a shock-" The man turned around, and noticed Ed.  
It was a voice he hadn't heard in more than ten years. A face he hadn't _seen_ in just as long. Yet somehow, Ed recognised both immediately. They had been ingrained in his memory for as long as he could trace back.  
"Ah, Edward," Van Hohenheim said, an awkward expression crossing his face. "You've finally returned." 

. . .

_Dun dun dun~~_

Well, sorry this one took a little longer to release. Enjoy! 


	7. Chapter 7

Envy had not spoken a word since he had entered the house and seen _him_. Honestly, he didn't trust himself to say anything; he knew that anything that came out of his mouth was going to be filled to the brim with vitriol and anger.  
He could feel it inside him; the desire to burn, to destroy, rising more heavily to the surface than it ever had before. It was, quite literally, all he could do to not act on his feelings – and even then, only because he knew the consequences would be severe if he did.

It seemed he wasn't the only one, either. Looking at Edward, Envy saw a calm rage brewing on the boy's face.  
Hohenheim either didn't notice his impending doom, or chose to ignore it. He addressed Ed with a pleasant voice.  
"I've been looking forward to seeing you again, my son."  
"Don't call me that."  
"Edward-"  
"No!"

With that, Ed charged forwards and next thing anyone knew, his fist had connected squarely with Hohenheim's jaw. Winry gasped, and rose as if to run between them; Pinako, without taking her eyes off the scene unfolding before her, grabbed Winry's arm.  
"Don't do anything stupid, Winry. Hohenheim can handle himself."  
Sure enough, while he had gone straight to the floor after Ed's strike, Hohenheim seemed relatively unfazed as he got back up. He rubbed his chin, where a bruise was already starting to form.  
"I guess I deserve that."  
"You guess?!" Ed shouted, his volume steadily rising as he continued. "You've been gone for over ten years and you show up _now_ like nothing ever happened?! What, you think you can just pick up where you left off?"

"Ed…" Al said, though he made no real move to stop him. "He's here now."  
Ed immediately turned his fury on his brother. "It's not _enough_, Al! Where was he when we actually needed him, huh? Where was he when Mom was dying, and we were scared out of our minds because we had no idea what to do? He didn't even show up to the damn funeral – such a loving husband, right?!"  
He went for a second punch – this time, Hohenheim intercepted it.  
"I completely understand your anger, Edward. But don't you think there's a better way to take it out than punching your father?"  
Ed ripped his arm out of Hohenheim's.  
"You are _not_ my father. Fathers don't just abandon their kids! And no, you don't understand. You have no idea. Get lost; we don't need you."

He stormed out of the room, slamming the door of his and Al's shared room behind him. Seeing his chance to get out of there, Envy did the same; heading straight for the room he had been assigned.

When he got there, he was glad to see that damn picture had been taken off the wall; the last thing he needed was to see _His_ face staring down at him right now. Finally able to release some of his aggression without fear of consequences, he growled as he knocked the tool box off the bench. Screws scattered everywhere, a couple hitting him before they too bounced off the floor with a clink.  
Not even half finished, Envy went on to push the entire bench over, kicking it once for good measure. Then he fell against the wall, curling in on himself as if he could squash his feelings away. Squash it all down, like he always had.

He hadn't even _looked_ at him.

. . .

Back in the living room, Al had his face in his hands as he let out a long, low groan. Winry moved to the seat closest to him and leaned against him.  
"Are you okay?"  
"I genuinely don't know which one I should be checking on _first_," Al complained. "Which one's angrier? Which one's going to cause the most damage if I don't get to them fast enough?"  
"Why don't you two split your efforts," Pinako suggested calmly as she lit up a pipe. "Winry can take Ed, you can take this Envy creature. That way nobody causes any damage, which I for one am very much in favour of."

Al had flashbacks to all the horrible arguments Ed and Winry had gotten into _with_ him present as a mediator; many of which had ended in violence.  
Then he thought about the idea of leaving her alone with Envy.  
_Nope_.  
"Okay, let's do it," he said, psyching himself up as he and Winry stood at the same time. Hohenheim crossed his arms uncomfortably.

"I feel like I should be solving this situation, since I'm the one who caused it. Apologies, Pinako."  
Pinako shrugged. "It's not that different to a normal day, actually. It would seem that Ed inherited more than your looks; he has that temper, too. You remember what you were like when you were younger."  
"All too well," Hohenheim said, taking a seat next to her again. "Alphonse, Winry, are you two sure you can handle this by yourselves?"  
"Honestly, I think that's for the best," Al said. "No offence, but I think the worst thing you could do is approach them right now. Especially Ed; he needs time to cool off."  
"Well, you do know him best. Good luck."

As soon as they were in the hallway and out of earshot, Winry pulled Al aside.  
"Are you sure _you're_ okay, Al?"  
"What do you mean?"  
"Come on, I know this has to be weird for you too. It's weird for _me_ and he's not even my dad!"  
"Okay yeah, it's weird. Lot of emotions. But I'm not about to beat someone up," he pointed out. "I think we have more important priorities right now."

She bit her lip, letting go of him.  
"Fine, you're right. Just – don't forget that you're important too, okay?"  
He gave her a thumbs up, heading over to Envy's room.

At the last moment, he figured it would probably be a good idea to knock before entering. He was already essentially entering the lion's den – he should probably at least give the lion a head's up.  
"Envy?"  
He entered the room, timid and sticking to the wall. Envy was huddled in the corner, balled up.  
"Go away."  
"Come on, do you plan to just stay in here alone?"  
"That's how I solve most of my problems."  
"And how does that usually work out for you?"

He didn't answer. Al decided to take it as progress; at least he wasn't being screamed at. He sighed, leaning against the doorframe.  
"Well, if you want to talk about anything, you can."  
No answer. Al bit his lip, casting one more glance at him.  
"You're not alone, you know," he said quietly.

Envy still wouldn't speak to him; but he did reach over and start to pick something up off the ground next to him. Correctly predicting that he was about to throw it at him, Al ducked out of the room and closed the door; just in time, judging by the thud on the other side.  
Groaning, he decided to check on Ed and Winry. He clearly couldn't do anything else here, at least for now. It was a shame; he had started to think he had gotten through to Envy.

He thought about it on his way up the stairs, and kept getting stuck on one thought. Envy's reaction to seeing Hohenheim was shockingly similar to Ed's. In fact, it was almost identical. But that would only make sense if-  
No. That was impossible. Envy was four hundred years old.  
He froze. Envy had told Ed he knew Hohenheim from when he was human.  
Envy was four hundred years old.  
It didn't take an automail engineer to see that _that_ maths wasn't adding up. He would have to mention this to Ed - but maybe he should wait until Ed had calmed down first, he thought with a wince.

He made his way to their shared guest room, knocking lightly before entering. Ed and Winry were awfully quiet in there, and he was starting to worry that they had legitimately killed each other.  
Entering, he breathed a sigh of relief to see Ed alone in the room.  
"What happened to Winry?"  
Ed, to his credit, looked chagrined.  
"I uh… may have told her to fuck off and leave me alone."  
"Wow. You really do have a way with women, Brother."

Ed flushed dark red, snapping "Yeah well, you don't exactly have a girlfriend either."  
"I'm not looking," Al reminded him. "Besides, with _you_ as my role model? Gee, I wonder why I'm still single."  
"Shut up," Ed groaned. "When the hell did you get so sassy?"  
"Probably when I became a teenager. A proper one, you know; with actual hormones."  
"Ugh, don't remind me. I don't want to know. Think I liked you better when you were a perpetual ten-year-old."  
Al tried not to flinch at the reminder of his time in the armour; he knew Ed wasn't trying to upset him, would _never_ use that against him. "Well, we all have to grow up sometime."

He waited a few minutes, before deciding to broach the topic.  
"Speaking of growing up…"  
"Don't, Al. I don't want to talk about it."  
"Do you really think if you ignore it, it'll go away?"  
"Why not? That's exactly what he did last time."

Ouch. That one _did_ sting.

"I'm not exactly thrilled either, Ed. It's weird, okay? I don't even know this man. At least you were old enough to remember him a little."  
"That doesn't make it easier," Ed said. "It makes it _harder_. You didn't know what you were missing."  
"Okay _that_'s insulting," Al said, allowing indignation to creep into his tone. "Yes I did. I saw our friends who had fathers. I knew Sarah and Urey. I'm not stupid; I knew what I was _supposed_ to have, and that I didn't have it. Please don't act like you had it so much harder than me, because you didn't."

He had to stop, trying to calm himself down so it wouldn't turn into a fight. He honestly didn't want to get into another fight with Ed, not now, when it felt like the entire world was already against him.  
"Look, I'm not saying you need to immediately forgive him. I haven't either. I'm just saying we should give him a _chance_. At least let him explain himself."  
"Why?! What has he done to deserve that? Why should we give him a chance, Al?"  
Al started to feel the beginnings of what would become a headache later. He rubbed his forehead.  
"I really didn't want to have to pull this card."  
"What do you-"  
"Remember how you felt that one time I ran away?"

He could see it in the way Ed's expression changed; his comparison was starting to sink in. Ed's face had paled, as no doubt some of his worst memories flashed through his mind. Al definitely had his attention _now_.  
"Remember how you felt when I didn't give you a chance? When I didn't even let you explain yourself? It was _awful_, wasn't it?"  
Ed tried to course correct, of course, because God forbid Al ever be allowed to feel normal human emotions like regret. "It was understandable based on what you knew at the time. I don't blame you for that."  
"But that doesn't change the fact that I was wrong," Al emphasised. "Didn't it turn out that there was a totally reasonable explanation? That I was overreacting? Because, as you just said, I didn't have all the information. Maybe _we_ don't have all the information."

"We have enough," Ed said, turning to face the wall. Al lost his temper _and_ his patience simultaneously.  
"You're so damn stubborn! It's not enough that our family fell apart once; we actually have a chance to fix it now, and you'll do anything to stop that from happening! Why can't we just be happy, Ed? Why can't we just get over the past, and salvage whatever tiny fragment of a normal family we have left?"  
"I don't _want_ that! I don't want to pretend to be his happy little family now!" Ed shouted. "He doesn't deserve that!"

Al didn't respond immediately; he didn't trust himself to. When he did answer, his voice was low and quiet; but he knew Ed wouldn't mistake his tone as being calm. Oh, no. Ed knew him too well for that.  
"And what about me? You're so focused on making sure Dad doesn't get more than he deserves. Did you ever stop to think that maybe _I_ deserve a father?"  
He didn't wait for him to answer. He stormed out, leaving a stunned Ed behind.

. . .

By the time the fog in Al's head cleared, he had found his way back to his favourite spot – not even realising that Envy himself had been here just hours earlier, fuming about his own Hohenheim problems. He sighed as he looked out at the calm river.  
There was a lot about this situation that he needed to mentally unpack, especially if he was going to talk to Ed about it – once Ed stopped being an ass, he thought somewhat bitterly.

He didn't just mean the timeline anymore, though he had definitely put a pin in that for later. No, in dealing with Envy and then Ed in quick succession, he had confirmed his other suspicions.  
The way those two were reacting to Hohenheim's presence was _identical_. He was sure of it now. And given that Al's frame of reference was Ed, that said a lot about Envy's motivations.  
He caught himself tracing back the conversation Envy had tried to dodge once before. There had been something in particular he hadn't wanted to talk about, something that went way deeper than just not giving the enemy too much information. He had thought about it, looked at Ed and Al, and decided to keep his mouth shut.

At this point, Al had a feeling he knew what Envy was hiding. He didn't want to believe it; didn't even understand how it could be possible. But he was a scientist before anything else, and he couldn't think of any other explanation. If it was the only explanation placed in front of him, it was what he had to accept.  
Out of sheer habit more than anything else, he sat down by the banks as he had since he was a very small boy. It was late at night; he really didn't think Ed was going to come looking for him this time, and he didn't expect him to. He just… needed some time to think.

It started to rain.

. . .

Back at the house, it was roughly an hour or so before Ed had cooled off enough to face the potential of seeing _him_ again. He certainly wasn't going to seek him out – half of him was hoping the old man had left already. He was more concerned with finding Al; he couldn't just leave things on bad terms between them. He had to make it right.  
With each room he checked, his heart rate raised a little more; especially as the rain outside started to turn to a storm. He had to stop to calm himself several times, reminding himself sternly that Al wasn't in the armour, rain wasn't a threat anymore…

But it was. If Al was outside, it could be. There was no blood seal to be at risk; but there was exposure, lightning, the floods that were all too common in Resembool.  
The floods _especially_, he thought with a shudder. He didn't know if Al was strong enough to swim yet, and he didn't want to put it to the test.

His anxiety growing, Ed decided to check Envy's room. He opened without knocking, only realising after the fact that it may not have been a smart move.  
It didn't matter. Envy was sitting on the bed, flipping absentmindedly through a book and snacking on nuts of some kind.  
"Is he gone yet?" He asked with his mouth full.  
"What, Hohenheim? I don't know. Hey, have you seen Al?"  
Violet eyes flicked up to meet Ed's.  
"Not for a couple hours, no. Why?"  
"I can't find him."

Envy shrugged. Ed grew impatient, clenching his fists.  
"Damnit, he could be in trouble Envy! In case you haven't noticed it's storming out there-"  
Envy slammed his book shut, jumping off the bed in one motion. At the very least, it seemed like his strength was recovering.  
"Fucking- Fine! Let's go find him, so I can get back to my book."  
He grabbed Ed's shirt as he passed, dragging him with him.  
"Wait, you're going to help?"  
"You're not going to leave me alone until I do. I know how this works by now. You sit there and passive aggressively whine at me until I 'decide to do the right thing'. So let's just get it over with."

He opened the door, seemingly totally unafraid of the thunderstorm outside. Ed backed off a little, and Envy rolled his eyes.  
"Do you want to find him, or not? You said he usually goes to that river I was at before, right? Don't you think if he's not in the house, that's the best place to start?"  
"He wouldn't still be out there. He's not that stupid!"  
"Sure seems like he is… Look, you're his brother, where else would he go?"

Ed didn't have an answer for him. Because once he thought about it, he realised there _wasn't_ anywhere else. They had had childhood friends, but they had both mostly cut ties with Resembool after the transmutation. As far as Ed knew, Al didn't have anyone else in town he'd be hanging out with. And it wasn't like they had a booming city centre, like Central.  
"Okay fine, let's go."

. . .

Al, to his credit, really _wasn't_ that stupid. He had decided to try and make for home as soon as the rain had picked up. It was just that, well, it wasn't really working out that well for him.  
His first problem was that the rain was so heavy it was actually making it difficult to see. He could feel every individual drop as if it was a pin digging into his skin, but he couldn't see anything more than blurry shapes. He could almost laugh; it was basically the inverse of his time in the armour.

At the present moment, rather shamefully, he was frozen on the spot. He knew he needed to get home; if he didn't, Ed was sure to come looking for him, and that wouldn't do at all with his automail. On the other hand, he really couldn't see where he was going at all – and he was absolutely terrified that he could fall into the river if he so much as stepped in the wrong direction. He had no idea if he could even swim yet; he hadn't tried.

Finally, he decided he had to start moving. He couldn't just stand here in the rain forever; he'd catch his death, and if he survived Ed would kill him for worrying him. So, moving very carefully, he started taking slow steps. Feeling his way along the ground; as difficult as it was to determine the difference between the flooded ground and the river, he could only hope there _would_ be a difference and that he would notice it if he felt it. He could tell that he was on an incline, and this was good; it meant he was heading up the riverbank, away from the water.

Thunder crashed in his ears; Al certain it was _way_ louder than it should be. He froze again, gasping in fear, as his hands came down over his ears.  
He waited, expecting to get struck at any moment. It never came. He started moving again.  
God, he hoped Ed wasn't looking for him. That idiot was going to get himself killed.

He started to get used to the technique, started to figure out what he was doing. Then he put his foot down wrong, or perhaps the mud was too slippery for him to gain traction, or perhaps the incline was too steep.  
He slipped, stumbled, and then fell.

He hit the ground rolling back down the hill, unable to gain purchase on the slick ground, feeling his momentum carry him straight into the path of danger but unable to stop it. Seconds later, he was underwater. His heart raced and he started to struggle, trying to get his head above the water; the river could be peaceful enough on a good day, but with the storm it was turbulent, and the heavy rain made it almost impossible to tell where the air began and the river ended. He started to panic.

He felt himself yanked sharply upwards by his shirt, surfacing seconds later. A second pair of hands appeared, curling under his shoulders to get a better grip. Slowly, his wet, shivering form was dragged back onto the bank.

For several minutes, all he could do was cough and splutter, propped up by a firm arm against his back. Once he was able to breathe again, he turned to see his rescuers.  
Ed was crouched next to him, holding him up. Envy was a short distance away, using his hand to shield his face from the rain as best he could – and sporting a decidedly annoyed expression.  
"Hey! Next time you feel like going swimming, wanna wait until we're _not_ in the middle of a goddamn Biblical flood? Humans are such fucking idiots…"

Ed gritted his teeth, turning back to his brother. "Ignore him. Are you alright?! Envy saw you fall; we got here as fast as we could! You didn't swallow any water, did you?"  
"Wha- how did he _see_ me fall? I can't see anything out here!"  
Ed's expression changed. Envy sighed.  
"He just got his body back, right? He's overstimulated. You think _you'd_ be able to see straight if you couldn't feel anything for years, and then suddenly got pelted with a thunderstorm?"

He stormed over, dragging Al to his feet against Ed's complaints, brushed Al's soaked fringe out of the way, and looked at him. Al blinked as he came into focus. Envy pushed him away, so roughly that he almost fell back to the ground but for Ed catching him.  
"His eyes are _fine_. I saw him focus on me just now. Let's just get back to the house; if we don't, _none_ of us will be fine pretty soon."  
He didn't wait for an answer, stomping back towards the house.

As soon as they entered, they were inundated with worried relatives. Winry leapt into action, grabbing a towel and throwing it over Al's head, then rubbing so hard Al felt like his hair was about to be pulled out of his scalp.  
"How could you let yourself get this soaked?! You're going to get sick! Your immune system is weak, Al, you _know_ that-"  
"In my defence, I fell into the river," he said, muffled.  
"You _what_?!"

She let go, pushing him towards his and Ed's room. "Go; get changed out of those clothes immediately! You have to dry off and warm up, or you could get hypothermia."  
Hohenheim started to approach, seeming almost afraid to get too close.  
"I'm so glad you're all alright; I was worried sick when Winry and Pinako told me Alphonse was missing, and that the two of you had gone after him-"  
"Save it!" Ed snapped. "If you were really worried, you would've come after us too!" He followed Al up to their room, slamming the door. Winry and Pinako left, conversing back and forth about how this might impact Ed's automail, and how Al would need to be supervised the rest of the night - just in case.

Hohenheim looked over at Envy, who had his arms crossed and was doing his darndest to completely ignore Hohenheim's existence.  
"William-"  
"_Don't call me that!_" In that moment, Envy genuinely looked – and felt – as though he might murder the man. To hell with not getting the precious Elric brothers in trouble, to hell with his own life at that point! He wanted vengeance, and at this particular moment he was not seeing green, but red.

Hohenheim remained calm, his passive expression unmoved by Envy's fury.  
"What happened to you?"  
"You know damn well what happened to me, you bastard! You're the one who _did_ it!"  
"No, I didn't. You weren't like this when I left."  
"The hell are you talking about? Are you even crazier than you were back then?"

Hohenheim adjusted his glasses, fixing Envy with that same calm expression, his lack of emotional response only heightening Envy's.  
"I see, perhaps there's a misunderstanding. I'm not talking about your body. I know full well that I'm responsible for that."

For a split second, Envy wondered if he could turn his arm into a blade. Maybe his powers had come back; he hadn't tested it in a while. He smiled as he pictured that bastard's blood splattered across the room-  
He couldn't deal with this. He couldn't be in the same room as that stupid old man for another second, or he really _was_ going to kill him.

"You did _that,_ too. I don't know why you think that just because you weren't there, it's not your fault." He barely got the sentence out through gritted teeth, practically running to his room.  
He didn't know how he was going to leave it again, not with Hohenheim here – which was going to cause problems, considering he now needed to eat. He had his snacks for now, but what about after he ran out?  
He hit his head against the wall.

Hohenheim had no idea what he was going to do. He didn't know why he had thought he could just come back and pick up where he had left off, and he recognised now that had been a silly dream. It felt like the blink of an eye to him, but he had been gone for ten years; for William, even longer. And for any normal person, that was a long time.

His case certainly wasn't helped by the events that he had been made aware of, which had taken place in his absence. Trisha, bless her soul, had passed away. Two separate pangs of agony went through his chest; the first at his own realisation that he would never see her again, the second at the haunted look he had caught in his youngest son's eyes when the story was being recounted.  
He couldn't believe he had missed that. Could barely comprehend that he would never see her smile or hear her soft voice again, nor that his sons had had to experience all of that _alone_.

He couldn't fix what he had done, he knew that much. But Alphonse's hesitant acceptance of his return had given him a distant spark of hope – maybe it wasn't too late to start making things right.

He wandered slowly up to Edward and Alphonse's room, raised his hand to knock, then paused. He wasn't even sure if Alphonse was done changing yet – and even if he was, Hohenheim really had no earthly idea what he was going to _say_. These were not the children he had left behind; they were practically men, and he had lost the ability to communicate with them in any meaningful way. He didn't _know_ these two young men who had grown up without him, though he recognised aspects of himself and Trisha inside them.

His nerves got the better of him. He sank to the floor outside the door, too afraid to enter and too desperate to leave.

As he sat there, parts of their conversation started to come to him through the wood of the door.  
"We need to come up with a more permanent solution."  
"To what?"  
"You know what. They're going to show up eventually. I know we told Mustang they wouldn't find us, but come on! Everyone knows this is where we grew up."  
"You know, maybe we're all overreacting."  
"Are you serious right now?"  
"I don't know, we don't know this 'leader' of theirs!"  
"Envy does, and he seems pretty concerned! Besides, did you forget about what happened at Dante's mansion-"

Hohenheim felt as if his blood had frozen to ice.

He hadn't heard _that_ name in a long time. He had certainly never expected to hear it from one of his sons.  
And that could only mean one thing; somehow, she had found them. And she had gotten them involved in her twisted game.

Anger flooded his veins. He had not been around to raise his sons; he would have to accept that. And they might not want him as their father. But he _was_ their father. And he wasn't going to let _her_ use them as pawns to accomplish her selfish goals.  
He got up, silently apologised to his children. And for the second time, he left them. 

. . .

Yooooo

Sorry I disappeared for a while. State of the planet being what it is, etc; plus I did struggle with this chapter a little more than previous ones (on that note, sorry if it's not as good as previous chapters; I tried).  
Enjoy this chapter; the next one will be coming soon!


	8. Chapter 8

Before anyone brings it up – yes the medicine in this chapter is a little anachronistic. Well, some of it is. One of the medicines I use actually DID exist at the time, from what I can tell – the other didn't, but I needed it for the scene.  
I figured it's okay because clearly Amestrian medicine is far more advanced than anything we had in the early 20th Century, so they probably have access to medications that we didn't, because alchemy would've sped things up.  
With that said, enjoy the chapter!

. . .

"We have to find him!"

Ed yawned, flipping his hair over his shoulder. "I'm telling you, he's long gone. You should've seen this coming."  
He fixed his eyes on Al, who was pacing back and forth in front of him and noticeably distressed. He frowned.

He would never admit it out loud, but Al wasn't the only one who had dared to get his hopes up. Ed himself had flirted with a fleeting thought or two that maybe _this_ would be the time. Maybe this time, he would stay. Maybe this time, Al was right. Maybe this time, it really would be a fresh start.

Those fragile hopes had of course been dashed when the boys had woken up this morning, only to be informed by Pinako that Hohenheim had left.

Again.

He tried not to think about it. Al. He had to focus on what was best for Al. He had to be strong for him, be a shoulder for him to lean on, just like he always had been.  
Poor kid hadn't even been old enough to _remember_ when Hohenheim had last left. Ed wasn't a complete asshat; he knew how hard this was on Al. 

Down the hall, a door opened just a crack. Ed's eyes flicked over to it.  
"He's gone, you can come out now," he called. Al ran from the room.  
"Hey- Al!"

The door opened, and Envy emerged. So, that bastard had finally left.  
It was about damn time. He had finished off his food late last night, and he was hungry. He just barely caught Edward running after his brother.  
Into the kitchen. Great.

He seriously considered going back to his room. He didn't want to deal with this right now.  
His stomach disagreed. Groaning, Envy steeled himself to deal with yet _another_ stupid human mess, and entered the kitchen.

By the time he got there, the brothers were already screaming at each other.  
"Al, come on-"  
"No! Leave me alone! You _wanted_ this, you _wanted_ him to leave! You were talking about it the whole time he was here!"  
"Al-"  
"It's probably _your_ fault! Don't you think he _heard_ you saying that you didn't want him here?!"  
He sank to the ground.  
"I hope you're happy. It's not like it matters what I wanted, right?"

Envy couldn't help but notice that at Alphonse's accusations, Edward's face paled. A moment later, he stormed from the room, leaving Envy alone with a sobbing Al.  
At first, Envy decided to just ignore him. He was here for a reason, and it wasn't to deal with whatever the hell this was. He had gotten involved in enough Elric drama already, he wasn't doing this again. He went to the cupboard and opened it.

Something tugged at his gut. He cringed.  
He had come to recognise this feeling, the longer he had spent with the Elrics. It was, he supposed, whatever broken scraps remained of his conscience. And as much as he wanted to, he couldn't just ignore it. He had learned quite painfully that this wasn't the kind of tug that went away by itself.

"He didn't want him to leave," he said, without even turning to look at Alphonse. The crying silenced.  
"What?"  
Gritting his teeth, Envy whirled around, and gestured at Alphonse with the box of cereal he had just picked up.  
"You should apologise to him for saying that; at least, if you want to get back on good terms with him. You know as well as I do that the Pipsqueak never _really_ wanted that bastard to leave."

Confusion crossed Alphonse's face for just a moment, before he buried himself in his arms again.  
"What do you know about it?"  
Envy opened his mouth to speak, then shut it again.  
He had been about to say 'because I didn't want him to leave either'. But that wasn't true at all. At least, he was sure if he said it enough times, he could make it so.

Instead, he simply shrugged. He brought his cereal down to the table, and started eating it dry.  
"You don't _have_ to listen to me. If you'd rather keep fighting with him, be my guest."  
They fell into silence for a time, the only sound the crunching of Envy eating.  
Eventually, Al joined him at the table. He had wiped the worst of the tears off his face, but he still looked utterly miserable. He sighed, resting his head in his arms.

Envy looked him up and down as he ate.  
"If you ask me, the real problem here is you gotta learn to stand up for yourself _before_ it gets to this point."  
"Huh?"  
"I heard what you said, about you feeling like it doesn't matter what you want. You're right, it doesn't. Because it doesn't matter to _you_. If you don't prioritise yourself, the hell do you expect anyone else to?"  
"I do prioritise myself," he snapped, finally looking up at Envy. Envy simply shook his head.  
"No, you don't. You prioritise yourself about as much as the Pipsqueak prioritises his automail. I'll ask again; if you don't put yourself first, why should anyone else?"

He stretched his arms behind his back. "That's why you don't get what you want. You're too busy making sure everyone else has what _they_ want. Keep up like that, you're going to be miserable."  
"Yeah, well I'd rather be miserable than selfish."  
"What if I told you it's _okay_ to be selfish sometimes? I knew a guy once; most selfish prick in the universe. You'd think someone like him would end up sad and alone, right? Except he wasn't. Somehow, he had more friends at once than I've had in any of my four hundred years. If friends are what you're worried about, don't be."

Al chuckled humourlessly.  
"I know who you're talking about. And you're right, he didn't end up sad and alone. He ended up_ dead_."  
Envy shrugged. "So does everyone, eventually. If there's one thing I've learned through all this, it's that even Homunculi can't escape that; not forever. Doesn't really matter how selfless and giving you are, that's still coming for you someday. Unless you're banking on an afterlife, but I get the feeling you're not really the type."  
"Not really, no."

Envy fixed Al with a calm, serious expression.  
"Look; do you know why we're named the way we are?"  
"Because you _are_ the thing you're named after?"  
"That's not the only reason. We're supposed to be physical representations of the sins _all_ humans have. Pride, for example; you and the Pipsqueak thinking you could beat God at his own game and bring back the dead. Wrath; the way the Pipsqueak acts when people _call_ him a Pipsqueak. Lust-"  
"Yeah yeah, I get the point. But if you're trying to say those things are good…"  
"I'm not," he said decisively, surprising even himself. "I'm saying they're normal. Everyone wants things, Tin Can. And there's nothing wrong with asking for what you want."

Al rubbed his temple, the beginnings of a headache forming. "I can't believe you're still calling me 'tin can'."  
Envy scrunched his nose up. "Yeah come to think of it, it's kind of dated now. Why'd you have to get your body back? Now I have to come up with a new nickname."  
"You could just use my name."  
"No."  
"Okay…"  
"See, that's exactly what I'm talking about," Envy pointed out. "You folded straight away; over something as basic and unimportant as me using your _name_. You're so willing to give up everything, even control over your own _identity_, just to keep the peace. And then you wonder why stronger personalities like Edward walk all over you. He's not _scared_ to ask for what he wants; he doesn't like what someone's calling him, he's gonna make sure they know that. You should learn that from him." 

He got up. "Anyway, I've definitely had my fair share of Elric drama for the day. Therapy session's over. Make up with your brother or don't; it's not my business, Tin Can."  
"Alphonse."  
Envy's eyes widened slightly; he turned to look at Al, who had fixed him with a slightly snarky expression. He grinned.  
"See, that wasn't so hard, was it? Fine, _Alphonse_. Nickname to be determined."  
He headed back towards his room, realising the conversation had given him just as much to think about as it had Al.

_You are what you're named after_.

Was he?

In the end, it was Ed who ended up seeking Al out. He found him on the couch, deep in thought.  
When Al looked up, he could already see the contrition on Ed's face.  
"Stop," he said, before Ed could even get a word out. "I know what you're about to say, and it's not your fault."  
"No, you were right. The whole time… _He_ was here, I was telling him to get lost. I shouldn't be surprised he actually listened to me."  
"That doesn't change the fact that I was really unfair to you. I was angry, okay? And I took that out on you. And I shouldn't have." He rested his chin on his hand, staring at the wall. "I'm supposed to be better than that."

Ed's brow crinkled. He sat down next to Al.  
"Why? Why should you be better than that?"  
"Because I'm the _good_ one! Everyone knows that. I'm not supposed to lose my temper and scream at people; that's _you_."  
"I'm gonna ignore the implied insult there…"  
"Who said it was implied?"

Ed chuckled, punching Al on the shoulder.  
"You're human. A human who's been through a hell of a lot. Stop holding yourself to such a high standard. Besides, who raised you again?"  
"Hm, you're right. Maybe I shouldn't be so surprised I'm turning out like you."  
Ed scruffed up Al's fringe, leaving him to brush it back out of his eyes. "Look, it's going to be okay. We'll get through this just like we always have. Together."  
"Together," Al agreed.

And then he coughed.

. . .

"Crap," Winry said, when Ed informed her the next day that Al had come down with a cold. "That idiot. I _knew_ this was going to happen; didn't I say this would happen?"  
She, Envy, and Ed were all standing in the kitchen; Al was upstairs resting. His illness wasn't particularly bad _yet_, but no one wanted to take that chance with how fragile his immune system was.

She started rummaging through her stores, pulling something out. Envy leaned over, reading the label.  
"White Pine and Tar, huh? I wouldn't have gone with that, but sure."  
She bristled. "Why not?"  
"You're a doctor, right?"  
"Automail mechanic," she corrected.  
"Which requires medical knowledge. So for all intents and purposes, you're a doctor. I'm going to assume that means you know what's in that stuff?"  
"Of course I do; it's chloroform."  
"Exactly. That's just gonna knock him out. It's not actually going to fix anything. The whole principle behind this stuff is 'you can't cough if you're unconscious'. Personally, I'm not a fan of that."

She put her free hand on her hip, glaring at him. "Okay smart ass; you've got my attention. What would you suggest?"  
Envy paused, then spent a moment ruffling through the bottles.  
"Here," he said, throwing something at Ed, "give him some of this."  
Ed looked at the bottle. "Diphenhydramine?"  
"It's usually used for allergies, but it's the closest you've got here. He's still gonna feel like hell, but it should help a little. Plus, he'll still mostly be able to function."

It wasn't long before he noticed both Ed and Winry were staring at him.  
"What?" Envy asked, growing uncomfortable.  
"You… seem to know a lot about this stuff."  
He shrugged.  
"I had a stint at a pharmacy once. I learned."

All of a sudden Winry was right in his face.  
"You have a background in medicine?" Her eyes were sparkling.  
"I guess? Not really. You definitely know more about medicine than I do; I personally just wouldn't be a fan of being knocked unconscious for days."  
"How the hell did that happen?" Ed asked. "I can't imagine you were stalking a potential victim at a pharmacy."

"No, you're right," Envy said. "It started with biology, actually. Had to learn that for obvious reasons."  
Well, reasons that were obvious to Ed. Envy wasn't sure if Winry had been given a rundown on his powers; he wouldn't be surprised if she had, due to his habit of causing trouble, but he also didn't _have_ his powers.

"Anyway," he continued, "That was back when Greed was still around. Geez, that takes me back. He and I got stuck in this one town for a while; we were on a… mission," he said, choosing his words carefully. "And we both ended up picking up jobs, to keep up appearances."  
"Let me guess," Ed said, "He worked at a bar?"  
"Yeah; how'd you know?"  
"He seemed to have a penchant for it."  
"And I worked at a pharmacy," Envy finished. "It seemed like a useful skill at the time, to go along with the biology."  
He cringed silently at the reminder of _why_ it had seemed useful. He had assumed that wound had closed; he supposed not.

Winry looked over the bottle one last time, before rolling her eyes.  
"Fine, Mister Pharmacist. I'll give you a shot, we'll see if this actually pans out. If not, we're doing it my way."  
She stomped upstairs to apply the medicine. Envy sank to one of the kitchen seats.  
It wasn't until Ed spoke that he realised he hadn't left.

"You were close, huh?"  
Envy glared at him.  
"Aren't you worried about your brother?"  
"Not particularly," Ed said, flopping down into another chair nearby, "Two of the best doctors I know live in this house!" He flashed his automail arm at Envy. "They're the ones who gave me these. Al will be just fine if those two have anything to say about it."

Envy rolled his eyes, staring at the ceiling.  
"I assume you're referring to Greed. No, we weren't particularly close. He did abandon us; though that shouldn't have surprised anyone; he was like that."  
"Yeah, I'm not buying that."  
"Why the hell not?"  
"Because," Ed answered, his tone completely level, "You're getting angry talking about it. Clearly when he left, it affected you at least a little."

"Well it did bring up some uncomfortable Hohenheim reminders," he shot back. Ed flinched.  
"I never thanked you, by the way."  
He looked at Ed for the first time, confused.  
"What for? Eating your food, terrorising your girlyfriend, or putting your job at risk?"  
"First of all, not my job anymore. I retired. Second, Al told me about your conversation with him. I know we fight a lot, but we _do_ talk to each other sometimes."

Envy felt his cheeks heat up. He quickly found himself looking away again.  
"Whatever. It's not like I care or anything. I was just getting a headache from the shouting."  
If Envy didn't know better, he would've thought Ed _chuckled_. "Of course. I wouldn't expect any less."  
They fell into an awkward silence, and Envy was just about considering leaving when Ed spoke next.

"Anyway, I'm sorry. About Greed. I didn't mean to-"  
"You did," Envy said, "Let's not kid ourselves. But I'm not holding a grudge if that's what you're worried about; at least, no more than usual. Like I said, Greed and I had a falling out. And honestly, he kinda had it coming. I always knew that guy was going to get himself killed someday…"  
"Really?"  
"Yeah," Envy said with a smirk, "I just assumed it would be with a bottle of beer in his hand and a pretty girl on his lap. I'm sure he thought the same. But that just goes to show, life doesn't always work out the way we planned."  
"No," Ed said, staring at the homunculus sitting in his kitchen, "No, it doesn't."

. . .

Winry was able to get away with babying Al for exactly three and a half days before he finally snapped. Ed was hardly surprised when it happened; Al had always fought for his independence, ever since they were children and their mother had wanted him to stay with Ed when they were out together. More often than not Al's immediate response had been to rebel and run off, forcing Ed to abandon his plans and search for him for fear of getting in trouble at home. Which inevitably caused a fight, which led to both of them getting in trouble anyway.

Despite the shouting upstairs – the argument one of those rare ones between _Al_ and Winry, rather than himself and Winry – Ed found himself smiling at the memory. He wasn't sure if Al had picked up his rebellious streak from him, or simply from being the baby of the family – but it had always been there, just more cleverly hidden than Ed's own.

His smile turned to a frown a moment later when, no longer content to yell at Winry, Al actually stormed downstairs and made for the door. Ed was no idiot; he was all for Winry leaving Al alone (and would certainly recommend as much to her), but he knew Al shouldn't be outside when he was already ill.  
He started to stand, calling after Al in what he hoped was a reasonable Big Brother tone – only for Al to completely ignore him, slamming the door behind him.  
Ed turned to Winry, who had run down the stairs after Al, crossing his arms.  
"The hell did you say to him?"

Al strode down the path, idly hoping the others wouldn't be too angry with him when he returned. He knew he was taking a risk, but he _needed_ to get out of there for a while; for his own sanity at least. Between Winry, Pinako, and Ed, he didn't think he could take it anymore.  
Especially since he was still trying to come to terms with his father's abandonment. He hated to admit it, but the more optimistic side of him was still desperately hoping Hohenheim would return. He didn't want to give up. Not yet.  
Even though he remembered how well his stubborn loyalty had gone down the last time, it wouldn't leave him alone.

Not watching where he was going carefully enough, he walked into someone on the path. Staggering back, he apologised profusely as his head snapped up to look at them- 

He stopped, noticing an incredibly familiar face that he had never expected to see again.  
_Lyra?_

He hadn't seen the young woman since Dante's manor. For a moment, he was relieved. After what Ed had described had happened there, he wasn't sure if Lyra had made it out alright. Especially since no one had ever heard from her again after that.  
His relief turned quickly to fear, however, as he more clearly registered Lyra's face.  
Her lips were curled into a warm smile; but her eyes were telling a very different story, two cold stones set into her face as if they had been placed over the eyes of a corpse.  
Every single alarm in Al's body went off. Something was _horribly_ wrong.

He turned to run, without even really thinking about it. Not because he recognised the exact source of the danger just yet; while he was aware _something_ was wrong, he couldn't quite pin-point what. His most primal fears had been activated in a way he was very unfamiliar with; having spent the most dangerous years of his life in a metal suit, and in that moment he was a terrified child running to his older brother for comfort.  
He heard Lyra _clap_ behind him. Had just enough time to register what that meant. Felt the spark of alchemy and luckily for him, his brain put two and two together fast enough.

He dodged just as hands came crawling out of the earth to take hold of him, narrowly avoiding their grasp. He spun back to face her, hands automatically shooting up into a defensive position.  
"What are you doing? I thought we were past this! You seemed like you'd changed last time I saw you!"  
The smile on Lyra's face widened.  
"So you _haven't_ figured it out? Well, that's certainly convenient for me."  
Al desperately searched his brain, trying to figure out what she meant by that. What was he missing?  
Then something clicked.

"When did you see the gate? You _clapped_ just now. You could never do that before. Even at Dante's house, you were still using circles."  
The smile finally dropped to a dissatisfied frown.  
"You Elric brothers really are too clever for your own good. Someday, that's going to get you in trouble."  
She clapped again, touching the ground and sending more earthen hands. Al barely managed to avoid them a second time, his shirt getting caught for a second before he pulled it free. He started fumbling in his pockets for chalk, or anything at all that he could use.  
"What do you want?"  
"See, I was hoping it wouldn't come to this. I really was. If I had had my way, this would have been over a long time ago. But that damn brother of yours just had to be stubborn."  
"Ed? What are you talking about?"  
"Just had to stick to his morals, didn't he? Had to find a way of returning your body without using a stone?"

Al looked down at himself, then back at her. He took a cautious step back.  
"How do you know about that?"  
She slowly advanced, attempting repeatedly to trap him. He was dodging for now, but he couldn't keep this up forever. And he had yet to find anything in his pockets that he could use to draw.  
Even if he could, he wasn't sure he could keep up with someone who could just clap. He had seen that work out in Ed's favour hundreds of times.  
_Ed_. He had to come looking for him eventually… right?

Suddenly, her eyes flicked in a different direction, now staring behind Al. He breathed a tentative sigh of relief; it was Ed. It had to be.  
Her expression deepened into something resembling disappointment.  
"Ah. I was hoping the information I'd received from Lust was wrong. It seems you _are_ running around with the Elric brothers, after all."  
Al turned. He was right; Ed had come for him. But he wasn't alone. Envy was standing frozen to the spot, his face a picture of total shock.

. . .

Envy couldn't think. Couldn't breathe.  
Hohenheim had been bad enough; but he would take that bastard back in an instant if it meant he wouldn't have to see _her_. Hell, part of him, deep inside, was _begging_ the man to show up unexpectedly to save the day.  
But then, when had those prayers ever been answered before?

Her attention seemingly having shifted completely away from Al, she sized Envy up from a distance. He felt her eyes on him, and the all-too familiar shame came rushing back.  
He had started to feel, after all this time, as if maybe he had escaped her. But just with one single glance, she had stripped away every inch of his newfound confidence.  
Did she really still hold so much power over him?

"Envy." The voice was calm, soft, alluring in all the worst ways. He had been trained like a dog to respond to that tone, and even now it hadn't lost its effect. "Forget all of this nonsense and come home. I have a special job just for you; it's tailored to your skill set. Of course, if you continue to behave so childishly, I might just have to give it to someone else…"

And in that moment, he genuinely considered it. The fragile ties he had built to the Elric brothers fell  
to shreds on the floor, and he thought of nothing more than walking over to her and re-joining his _real_ family. She had said she had a special task just for him, one tailored specifically to his skills… 

_His skills_. The skills, he was reminded suddenly, that he didn't currently have. Would she still have him, if she knew?  
Maybe she would. He didn't really know she wouldn't. Hope flared in his chest; maybe he could still go home.  
Edward's voice finally got his attention.  
"Don't do it, Envy! She's using you, and you know it! She ran you ragged, had you on the verge of death and she didn't even _care_! You really think she'll still want you when she finds out the truth?"

"Do you really believe _them_ over me," Dante countered smoothly. Her face was impassive and her voice was still that calming purr; only the glint in her eyes gave away that she was at all curious about this 'truth' Ed had mentioned.  
"All they've ever done is attack you and hurt you. All their _father_ has done is attack you and hurt you. I am the only person who has _ever_ been there for you. I would caution you against throwing that away; it's a rough world to face alone."

Her own words ended up betraying her. They achieved their desired effect; Envy was hit instantly by the logic of her words, the pain and anger of Hohenheim's rejection – but something she had said made him stop.  
"That's not true at all."  
"What?"  
He shook his head, having to pull his hair back out of his face.  
"You said all the Elrics have done is hurt me. Oh but that makes sense; Lust didn't _know_, did she? She wasn't around long enough. She wouldn't have told you that they saved my life, even though I was their enemy. That they've done nothing since then but care for me and try to protect me from harm. What would you have said to me if you'd known that? What lie would you have come up with to pull me away from them?"

She rolled her eyes. "You're being ridiculous."  
He scoffed. "I don't think I am. You almost had me, too. Thanks for saying that; you've given me the chance to think clearly for the first time since you got here."  
He took a step towards her. "That's your pattern. First it's the 'I won't be mad' act. Then you bring up Hohenheim. You threaten me. You've done it every single time, since I was born. My sin, my jealousy; you've been using it against me this whole time!" He grabbed his head as if he could squeeze the emotion out. A hollow laugh escaped him.  
"And I've been stupid enough to fall for it!"

He didn't miss the brief flash of pity that went through Al's eyes. He only imagined Ed had the same response.

Dante sighed.  
"Fine, it seems you're determined to continue behaving this way. I'll simply do what I came here for." She turned back to Al. Both Ed and Envy reacted violently.  
"What do you want with the kid?"  
"If you lay a _hand_ on my brother…"  
Envy shot Ed a glance, a question in his eyes that was too dangerous to ask aloud.  
_Can you?_  
The hopelessness Ed reflected back was the only answer he needed.  
_No_.

Dante clapped again, and this time Al was too slow. He yelped as his hands were pulled back behind him, struggling to free himself to no avail.  
Envy was closer. He started running.  
Dante shot him a side glance, then pulled something out of her pocket. She lifted it up, brandishing it at him.

In an instant, every bit of energy was drained from his body. The shock to his system made him drop to his knees, panting heavily.  
"Damn you," he managed.  
"You should have thought of that earlier. I taught you better than that," she chided. She looked over at Ed, smiling.  
"It seems you've lost your motivation to create a stone. I would just find another alchemist, but the others haven't been successful with any new leads yet. And thanks to Hohenheim's pathetic attempt to stop me, I was finally able to find you."  
All three reacted to the news simultaneously with shock.

"Hohenheim- he- what?" Ed barely managed to sputter out.  
He had left… to stop her? Envy's mind was spinning. He had left to _stop_ her!  
But where was he? Why was she still here?  
His stomach dropped.  
Hohenheim wasn't coming. And it wasn't his fault this time.

"So I suppose if there's no demand for a Philosopher's Stone around here, I'll just have to create some." She pulled the thin metal belt from around her waist. With another clap it became a knife.  
"How does your brother's death sound to you?"  
Ed's voice became a panicked shriek; and the irony was that only Envy truly understood _why_. Even if Dante successfully murdered Al, she wouldn't get what she wanted out of Ed.  
Ed had already started moving; but he was too far away. There was no way. Envy was half that distance. But he couldn't fight; not while that bitch was holding _that_.

A terrible idea came to him.

Would he really? Could he? The whole reason he was in this mess in the first place was because of his self-preservation instinct, and it was an awfully big gamble. One he wasn't at all sure he could win.  
Dante moved forwards to strike. Ed screamed. Al closed his eyes and held his breath.  
Envy made his decision.

Using what little strength he had, he forced his shaky legs to support his weight. Just a few seconds… that was all he needed. He couldn't fight; no way in hell. But he wasn't planning to.  
He made it just in the nick of time, the weight of Dante's secret weapon so oppressive it almost pushed him to the ground a second time.

He gritted his teeth as a searing pain tore into his chest.

He fell to the ground as the pressure was removed, coughing on the blood rising in his throat. Seconds later, a commotion started right above him as Ed presumably joined the fight.  
Envy, however, was unable to focus on any of it. He could hear his heart beating in his ears, and his head was starting to pound in time to it.

A spark fizzed to life in his chest, right where the blade had pierced him. He didn't have the energy to register what it meant.  
He slipped into darkness.

. . .

Don't worry, this is not the final chapter! This is not where the story ends. I will tell you when the story ends.  
See you guys next time!


	9. Chapter 9

Hey, guys! Long time no see!  
Sorry, I know this chapter took a really long time. Here's what happened. I wrote out almost the entire chapter, and then realised that it wasn't meeting my standards. It wasn't awful – I've actually taken bits of it and included them in this version – but it wasn't my best effort, and I'm not okay with that. You lovely people are kind enough to read my stories, and you deserve my best effort – not a rushed, meandering, clearly unfinished mess.  
So I ended up rewriting the entire thing. I still wouldn't say it's "the best chapter yet" – but it's a lot better than the previous version. It's something I feel comfortable placing in front of my readers now. I'm really sorry for the wait, and hopefully this is at least worth it. Because I really do want to put out work that I think you'll enjoy reading.

Anyway, enough with that. On with the story!

. . .

Envy shouldn't be alive. He recognised that fact almost as soon as he regained consciousness. The blade had gone straight through his chest, and for weeks now he had been little more than a weak mortal.  
So why was he?

He took inventory of his body. While his chest was sore, it didn't hurt as if a literal sword had just gone through it. It was more of a dull ache. He was tired and had a headache, but didn't have any other noticeable discomfort. What the hell had happened? Why was he still breathing?

The door opened, and he flinched – before realising it was only Edward. He relaxed, and could almost laugh at how once upon a time, the Pipsqueak's presence would have made him _less_ calm.  
He couldn't tell anymore whether that was a good or bad thing. He didn't care.

Ed crossed his arms, looking Envy up and down. The caution Envy had always known was still present, obvious in the guarded posture Ed held – but there was something else, too. A strange softness had taken hold in his eyes, one that Envy had never seen before and couldn't place.  
"Huh; so you did survive."  
"Yeah, I was about to ask you about that. How?"  
For a split second, he saw hesitation in those gold eyes. Then Ed sighed.  
"It looks like your powers are starting to come back."

It took Envy a moment to even comprehend what he had just heard. It was as if Ed had spoken to him in Xingese. When the words finally sank in, his heart began to race.  
"What do you mean?"  
"That blade went straight through your chest. No human would've survived that, let alone heal as fast as you did. Granted, you're nowhere close to where you were yet. Don't get too excited; it still took a few days for the wound to close properly."  
"But it did close," Envy insisted. Ed nodded.

He was giddy. He hadn't even been aware of it until that moment; but he had accepted at some point that his powers might be gone for good. The idea that they had started to return – and in his moment of need, no less – was more than he had dared hope.  
"So you really didn't know," Ed mused.  
"What?"  
Ed's eyes flicked back to Envy.  
"You didn't know your powers were back?"  
"_No_. I thought that was pretty clear. You guys told me they wouldn't come back, remember?"  
"We said we didn't know," Ed corrected. "Still, you had no idea that they would. So that begs the question; why did you do it?"

Now Envy was even more confused.  
"Do what?"  
"Envy. You threw yourself in front of Al. You took a sword through the chest for him. If you knew you were immortal, and it was in your best interests to keep him alive, I'd understand using yourself as a meat shield. But as far as you knew, you could've died. Why would you do that?"

Envy paused.  
He actually had no idea how to answer that question. Now that he stopped to think about it, he didn't _know_ what had possessed him to put his own safety at risk to protect Alphonse. He certainly wouldn't have done it for anyone else.  
All he remembered was a flurry of emotions; his temptation to return to Dante, the final rejection he had experienced from her, the realisation that she was about to kill Alphonse – and in that moment, _strong_ opposition to that concept.

Why?

That strange, unfamiliar warmth crept back into Ed's eyes, inches at a time.  
"You saved his life, you know."  
Envy scoffed. "Oh, please. I don't even know why I did it. Don't get sappy on me."  
"Ugh," Ed groaned, "I'm trying to say thank you!"  
"Yeah, and who said I _wanted_ that?"  
"Why do you make things so difficult, damnit?"  
"Because it's fun!"

While the content of their conversations hadn't changed much, the tone had markedly shifted. It felt almost as though some of the venom had been sucked from their interactions; not all of it, but enough that Envy no longer genuinely believed he might attack Edward at any moment.  
The old Envy wouldn't have believed it.  
Ed shook his head, and started to leave. "I'll have to tell Winry you're awake; she'll want to look at you."  
He was almost at the door when Envy called after him. Once again, it was impulsive; there wasn't a _reason_ that he could trace. He simply felt that he must do it.

"And Alphonse?"  
Ed turned back.  
"What about him?"  
Envy bit the inside of his cheek, trying to decide whether speaking had been a mistake. A touch of that caution had come back in Ed's eyes; the familiar protectiveness he held towards his precious baby brother. Finally, he decided it was too late to back out now.  
"Is he… okay?"

Envy would swear from then until his dying day that he had caught the barest hint of a _smile_ on Ed's face. One not directed at his brother, girlyfriend or superior – one directed at _him_.  
"He's fine. I'll let him know you asked."  
"No, wait- ugh."  
He glared at the empty doorway, trying to figure out his damned emotions all over again. He was going to get to the bottom of this, somehow.

. . .

Ed found Winry chatting to Al at the table in the main room; or more accurately, _trying_ to. She was doing all the talking, while he seemed to be lost in thought.  
Ed wondered if he was still getting over his recent near-death experience. It wasn't exactly new for them, but there was still something about coming within inches of the end that just… got to you. Ed had never really gotten used to it himself; and he imagined it had been very different for Al when he had been in the armour. This had been his first experience with any real danger since his body had been returned.

"Hey," he said. They both looked up.  
"Thought the gearhead would wanna know that Envy's awake."  
She jumped up, her eyes shining. "No way. Already? You did say he has some kind of magic healing powers, but I had no idea they worked this fast!"  
"They actually usually work faster- Hey, Win!" She had already left, practically running up the stairs. He sighed.  
He _really_ hoped she wouldn't decide to take him apart in one of her psycho experiments. Envy might be immortal, but Ed still wasn't sure he could be put back together quite as easily as a pocket watch or automail limb.

He looked back over at Al, who seemed distracted again. He plopped down next to him.  
"You know, you'll get wrinkles if you keep pulling that face."  
Al snapped back to Earth.  
"Sorry, I was thinking."  
"About what?"  
"You're not gonna like it."  
"What else is new?" Ed asked, rolling his eyes. "Anyway; you heard what I just said, right?"

He nodded. "Envy's awake, right? That's good news; I was worried he wouldn't pull through."  
"I never thought I'd say this, but so was I. Oh; he asked after you, by the way."  
Al pulled a face. "Wait, really?"  
"Yep," Ed said, sighing dramatically. "Looks like you've got a fan! Someday you'll be just as famous as your big brother…"  
He noogied him. Al pushed at his shoulder, laughing.  
"Stop, brother. Besides, you and I both know you're not famous anymore," he quipped back. "You stopped being relevant when you disappeared off the face of the planet for almost a year, remember?"  
"Ouch."  
"Well it's true!"

Ed scoffed. "What were you thinking about, anyway?"  
"I told you, you won't like it."  
"Tell me, you little shit."  
"Fine," Al sighed. He glanced at the phone on the table.  
"You and I both know-"

"No, stop!" Ed protested.  
"I haven't said it yet!"  
"I can tell from your tone. You're gonna say we need to call Mustang."  
"Well, what do you suggest? We thought Resembool would be safe. It's clearly not. We can't do this on our own, Ed. We need help."  
"We've handled everything on our own so far," Ed said with a whine. Al opened his mouth to say something, then closed it at the last second.  
"Things are different now," he said, finally.

Ed tugged at his braid, a few stray strands falling loose. "Yeah, yeah! You're right, as usual. Fine; I'll give him a call."  
"Maybe I should," Al joked. "You can have kind of an attitude."  
They fell into a comfortable silence, sitting together as the clock on the mantle ticked merrily. There was definitely something on Al's mind, but Ed had no idea how to bring it up. And he had no idea if _Al_ had any interest in talking about it. He could be awfully withdrawn when he was troubled.

Al finally spoke, his words echoing in the quiet room. When he heard what he had to say, Ed's heart damn near stopped.  
"Why didn't you use alchemy?"  
"What do you mean?" Ed asked, his tone carefully flat.  
"That whole fight with… Lyra, or whoever that was. You could've kept up with her easy, but you didn't. You just stood there like you couldn't do anything. You didn't even use alchemy to break me out of the dirt; you left me there while you took care of Envy, and then you and Winry chipped it apart by hand."

Ed started to panic. He had always known he would have to tell him eventually, but he had hoped it would be on his own terms. Never had he suspected that Al would figure it out first.  
"And?"  
"Why, Brother?"  
"I just don't like using it anymore, okay?"  
He knew he shouldn't be lying; not now, when he had already been caught. But the fear was taking over, that same damn fear that had stopped him from talking honestly with Al about the night of the transmutation.

It was exceedingly obvious that Al wasn't falling for this, either.  
"Bullshit-"  
"Don't swear," he said, automatically.  
"Whatever," Al said, waving his hand dismissively. "Let's ignore for a second that that's _not_ you; that you love alchemy more than anything. My life was in danger, Ed. If there's one thing I know about you, it's that you would do _anything_ in your power to save me."  
"Duh." He flushed; while it was true and he knew it, it still embarrassed him a little to hear it aloud.

"But you didn't transmute," Al pointed out. "You didn't even try. I've been thinking, and I can't remember a single time you've used _any_ alchemy since…"  
His brain finally clicked, right as Ed started scrambling for another excuse.  
"You never told me what you gave up," he said, and Ed's stomach dropped from under him. Horror was starting to creep into Al's expression, and he hated it.  
"To get my body back, I mean. I even asked you; you just smiled and told me not to worry, that it wasn't important."  
"It _wasn't_."  
"Ed, I was worried you gave up your liver or something! But that wasn't it, was it?"

"Al…"  
"Just say it!" Al said. "I'm tired of you hiding things from me. I'm not a child anymore, for god's sake; I haven't been one since the day Mom died."  
While he hadn't _quite_ broken into a shout, it was close enough to get his frustrations across. Ed glanced at the ceiling, worried that Winry or Pinako might hear.  
Then he sighed, staring at the floor and clenching his fists. He couldn't hide it anymore. He had known it for a while, but now he had been faced with the horrific reality.

"I gave up my alchemy," he said, speaking to a silent room. "I can't transmute anymore."  
Al didn't answer; he didn't have to. The look in his eyes was enough. Before Ed was able to say anything, Al had started to walk off.  
"Al!"

Before he had even taken two steps, Ed was next to him, holding his shoulders. "Come on, don't be mad! What was I supposed to do? You were running out of time, the stone was a bust, we had no options left."  
"I'm not _mad_ at you," Al snapped, tears threatening at the corners of his eyes. "Are you kidding me? How could I ever be mad at you for that?"  
"But then…" Ed finally realised the truth of the matter. He pulled his brother into a hug.

"No. Don't. Don't do this to yourself, Alphonse."  
"But you _loved_ alchemy; it was your whole life! You've been using it since you could _read_! How can I not feel guilty that you gave all of that up for me?"  
"I love _you_," Ed said, cutting him off. He pulled back, looking into Al's eyes and smiling; that tender, goofy smile he only ever gave _him_.  
"Come on, you're my little brother. You think I'd rather have my alchemy than you? Do you really think you mean that little to me?"

Al sniffed, rubbing his sleeve across his face. "Do you ever regret it? I wouldn't blame you if you did-"  
"Never. Even when you're driving me nuts; not even then. I would not trade you for _anything_, Al. I thought you knew that by now. And if I ever had to make that choice again, I'd do exactly the same thing."  
A smile finally crossed Al's face; a small one, but enough to convince Ed he had gotten through to him. He let Al go, and crossed his arms.

"Right now, we have more important things to worry about."  
"Like what?" Al asked. Ed nodded towards the stairs.  
"Well first, we have to call Mustang. After that? It's time for Envy to give us some more information. Hopefully, he's a little more willing than last time."  
"Right," Al said. He headed for the phone. Ed groaned.  
"Let's get this over with."

. . .

Envy had always thought there was no such thing as a human he could fear. He was a homunculus, after all; what was there to be afraid of?  
He had since realised that this was not true. He was very much afraid of Winry Rockbell.  
He winced as he shifted his weight; he was _still_ sore from her examination. He knew at this point that the Elrics had to have told her about his status as a homunculus; he had seen normal medical evaluations, and they weren't normally _that_ intense. He hoped he wouldn't have to see her again for a while.

The door opened, and he started – only to realise it was the Elric brothers.  
"Oh, it's you." He watched as they approached the foot of the bed; Ed leaned against it, while Al hovered a step or two behind.  
He noticed that Al's eyes were red; had he been crying? A twinge in his chest; what was that?  
He very nearly asked about it; he didn't have time, before Ed opened his mouth.

"Okay, Envy," he said, sharing a brief glance with Al, "It's time to start talking."  
"About what?"  
"Your master. Lyra?"  
Envy sighed, running a hand through his hair.  
"Makes sense. You want to know what she's up to, and how you can stop her."  
"You benefit from this too," Al reminded him. "You're weak right now; vulnerable. And she clearly has some kind of weapon she can use against you. We can help keep you safe, but you have to teach us how."

"Yeah, yeah. I'm not stupid," he said, rolling his eyes. He pushed back the small part of him that _still_ didn't want to say anything; they were long past the point of secret keeping, and he knew it.  
"Look, I don't know who this Lyra person was; but I assure you, the woman you saw isn't her. My master body jumps."  
The brothers were both confused; he could see it in their expressions.  
"You mean, like what you do?"  
"Nope. She's not copying a physical appearance; she literally takes someone else's body. That's Lyra's body, but you weren't _speaking _to Lyra."  
"She _what?_" Ed shouted. "How can she- she's killing those people! Right?"

"Yep," Envy confirmed. "Are you really surprised by this? You just watched her almost murder your brother. I think it's obvious she's not above killing."  
Al had paled. "You mean, Lyra's dead?"  
"As far as I know. I guess it's _possible_ the original person could still be in there, but I've never seen any traces of them after my master takes over. And she destroys the last body every time she jumps, so it's not like I could figure it out that way."  
"But I don't get it," Al asked, "Why would she steal bodies? What does she get from that?"

"Immortality," Ed said, before Envy could answer. Al looked over at him.  
"Think about it, Al. If you could just switch to a younger body every few decades, you could outrun old age. It would make a human capable of living for hundreds of years." His eyes hit Envy's. "Isn't that right?"  
Envy nodded. "You're not wrong. That's why she does it." He hesitated, fighting back the urge to clam up.  
"Her real name is Dante."

"Dante?!" Ed sputtered. "That old lady who lived in the mansion?"  
"So you know her?"  
"Yeah; we went to her house!"  
Envy felt a brief flare of rage. Not directed at the Elrics, but at Dante. She had known for many years that he had desired to take revenge against them. To know that she had _seen_ them, and had said nothing of it to him… It set him ablaze.  
He shook his head. Now wasn't the time; he had to clear his head.

"She created maybe half of us by herself. And she sought out the others, from all across the country."  
"Why? I can understand her motives for the body jumping, but why create homunculi? Especially if she can just scavenge them from other people. She doesn't need to make her own!"  
"When she first discovered the existence of homunculi, it didn't take her long to become fascinated by us," he said, rolling his eyes. "In particular, she's interested in our natural immortality. She's done some weird stuff with homunculi and aging. I think she's trying to reverse engineer it; figure out if she can apply it to herself, somehow."

Ed's hands clenched. "That's disgusting."  
"Why?" Envy asked, confused. "If she figures it out, she won't have to steal bodies anymore. For humans, that should be a good thing."  
"But she's using you guys as test subjects," Al pointed out. "That's wrong."  
"But we're not human, so why does it matter?"  
"Because you're still sentient beings with thoughts and feelings, damnit! We've seen that ourselves."  
"I'm flattered," Envy deadpanned, ignoring Ed's temper.  
"Not _just_ with you," Ed said.  
"Besides," Al added, "the issue of the homunculi aside, she's messing around with human transmutation." He shuddered. "And, as we know from experience, that doesn't usually end well. Someone has to stop her, before someone gets hurt."  
"Speaking of," Envy said. The brothers looked back at him.

He cleared his throat awkwardly. He had no idea how to have this conversation. In past days he would have carelessly blurted it out, enjoying the way their faces twisted in horror; but he found that now, even if only the younger Elric, the thought of seeing the face that had shown him such kindness in pain made him _very_ uncomfortable.  
"Look," he said. "At this point, it seems like some kind of conflict with Dante and the other homunculi is inevitable. Especially now that they've found you two – she won't let you go without a fight. She's been looking for you for a year. I've met enough humans to know that you two need to be aware of this before that fight starts, or it's going to cause problems…"  
Ed's blood turned cold. He knew what Envy was about to say, and he had already figured as much. But he didn't want him to finish the sentence; because if he said it out loud, it became real.

"One of the homunculi who's with Dante is the one you created."

The room went completely silent, as the brothers digested the information. Ed hid his face behind his bangs. Envy shrugged, a faint emotion akin to pity brewing in his chest.  
"I had to tell you. If she catches you off-guard with _that_ little surprise… well, she did say Hohenheim left by himself to stop her. That's probably exactly what happened to _him_."  
Al's eyes widened. "That's right, she did say that." He prodded his brother. "Ed, he didn't abandon us! You heard what she said! Dad must have heard us talking about her; he must've known we were in danger. He left to stop her!"

Ed straightened, his brow knitting together as his mind started to whir.  
"Why, though? Even if he heard her name from us, why would he recognise it? And why would that clue him in that she was after _us_?"  
"You have a point; that is strange," Al conceded. They thought about it for a few minutes, their eyes drifting around the room. As Ed's fell on Envy, he noticed that the homunculus' mouth was held in a tight line.  
"You know the answer to that, don't you?"

Envy tensed. "What makes you think that?"  
"For a shapeshifter, you're a terrible liar."  
"That's not fair; I'm not used to feeling guilty for lying," he grumbled, accidentally outing himself in the process.  
Ed remembered his earlier conversation with Envy, and his voice took on an indignant tone.  
"You said you _knew_ him, from when you were human!"  
"So?"  
"Your body's young; you couldn't have been older than twenty when you died."  
"I _am_ a shapeshifter…"  
"Who hasn't been able to shapeshift for months! Any form you were holding would've dropped by now. This is your real body."  
"Plus you have those nodes," Al added.  
"The what?"  
"The red lines; all the homunculi I've met have them. That's another piece of evidence that this is the body you were born with."

Envy craned his neck to look over his shoulder, where he knew the nodes lay across his back – a surer pointer than any as to his true identity.  
"Fine. This is my 'real' body," he admitted, mimicking air quotes as he spoke. "What's your point?"  
"You also told us you're over four hundred years old," Ed said, leaning forwards. "Let's be generous, and take away twenty for your human life. I don't even think you're _that_ old, but for the sake of argument. Hohenheim looks like he can't be older than his forties or fifties… That's still a _really_ big gap. Even if he was born in your last days of human life, there's no way he should still be alive today."

"I feel sick," Al said, standing up. Ed knew he had just come to the same conclusion.  
"He's been doing it too, hasn't he," he asked, making direct eye contact with Envy.  
"Doing what?"  
"Don't play dumb with me; the time for that is long past! He's been stealing people's bodies too. Yes, or no?"  
Envy bit his lip, genuinely struggling with the answer. Ed's unwavering stare broke him. He sighed.  
"If it serves as a consolation prize, she made it very clear that it was _her_ idea."

"That doesn't matter!" Ed roared. "He took part in it! He's responsible for how many deaths; fifty? A hundred?"  
"Can't be. Even Dante's done it less than ten times, and I can't imagine he's done it many more. He didn't _want_ to do it at all, at least not when I knew him. And you have to remember, any time either of them did it they had to use the Philosopher's Stone to make it work."  
Ed sat back, his face draining of colour.  
"The Philosopher's Stone?"  
"Well, yeah; you think either of them would've had that kind of power without it? That's why Dante needs a new stone; her old one ran dry."

"That's why she's been hunting down alchemists," Al said, a sudden clarity coming to his voice even as he still looked like he might vomit. "Desperate alchemists, who have lost something. People who would be willing to do _anything_."  
"Alchemists like us," Ed finished. "She did say we were her best lead; something like that." He turned back to Envy. "That's why you were hunting us."  
"Yes," Envy said. "I mean, I had my own personal issues with you; and Sloth and Dante had their plans. But the other homunculi were just doing as they were told."  
Ed's forehead wrinkled again, deeper this time, as Envy's words fully registered.

"Personal issues?"  
Envy realised his mistake.  
"You'd never even met us before. How could you have personal issues with us?"  
"Hohenheim," Al said. The others both turned to face him. Envy's heart skipped a beat when he saw Al's face – he wasn't confused, like Ed. His face was calm, resolute.  
He _knew_. Somehow, he had figured it out.

"He never had a problem with us; not really. He had a problem with our father; and by extension, that meant he had a problem with us."  
So what did he do to _you_, huh?" Ed started to ask. Al cut in.  
"What he did hardly matters. The important thing here is how Envy feels now."  
He had addressed the last statement towards Envy, who swallowed. He wasn't ready for _this_ conversation either.

"I don't know."  
"You don't know?"  
"I don't know how to feel about _anything_ anymore," he admitted, showing a rare vulnerability. He hated it; _hated_ letting anyone see his weaknesses. But considering all they had been through together, and the fact that he still needed their help, he figured he could consider this an olive branch of sorts.  
"I'll admit it; for as long as I've known about your existence, I've _hated_ you. You don't even want to know what I've fantasised about doing to both of you."  
"And now?" Ed asked, his expression hardening in a way Envy had become surprisingly unused to. He was raising his guard again, after having tentatively lowered it; and Envy realised that it actually _hurt_.

"You saved my life," he said. "I meant everything I said to Dante. Recently, you've been nothing but kind to me; I still don't understand why." He shrugged. "I guess I have some things to think about."  
"It doesn't matter, I guess," Ed said. "At least for now, we're all on the same side. Mustang will have some ideas on how we should handle this. For the meantime, we need to know what the deal is with that box."  
"The wha-" Belatedly, he realised what Ed was referring to.  
"The box Dante had, right?"  
Ed nodded. "That thing stopped you dead in your tracks. We need to know why. We're teammates; that means we have each other's backs. You had ours just now; you warned us about.."  
"Sloth," Envy finished, choosing to ignore the pained look in Ed's eyes.  
"Right." He took a moment to compose himself.  
"Now it's time for us to have yours. The box. What is is, and can we help?"

"I don't think so," Envy said. "It's… a bit hard to explain."  
"Try."  
"Homunculi have one weakness. We were created to mimic the dead; the only thing that can weaken us is…"  
"The real thing," Ed said, his eyes lighting up.  
"Right. I'm not entirely sure what it is; I've never seen it. But whatever's in that box, it has to do with my human life. Could be actual remains; a bone or a hair from my corpse. Could be an object that meant a lot to me, once. Whatever it is, it's going to have that effect every time I go anywhere near it."  
He choked a laugh out. "It's her insurance policy. To make sure none of us ever turn on her."

"Does that mean she has one for all of you?" Al asked, his expression turning thoughtful.  
"As many as she could find. I know she has something for Pride, and Lust. But getting Pride's wouldn't be easy; she lets _him_ hold onto that one himself. I guess she trusts him the most."  
"More than you?" Ed asked. "Aren't you the first?"  
"Yeah, but I've always been kind of a loose cannon," he admitted. "She's never really trusted me. It got worse when Greed left; she never said it, but I knew she thought I'd be next. She kept my leash annoyingly tight after that."  
He shrugged. "Looks like she was right."

There was a knock at the door. Everyone looked up, as Winry opened it slightly and hovered next to it.  
"Sorry to interrupt. Colonel Mustang and Lieutenant Hawkeye just arrived."  
"Great," Ed sighed. "I'll go explain the situation."  
"Can I trust you not to get into a fight?" Al asked, with a sickly-sweet smile. Ed smirked.  
"That depends on him, and how many short jokes he cracks."

Ed followed Winry out of the room, leaving Al and Envy alone. Envy took a moment to appreciate the gesture of trust; it wasn't so long ago that Edward would _never_ have left him alone with his baby brother; would have dragged Alphonse out of the room by force, if he had to.  
Al cleared his throat. Envy remembered that this might be the only chance he would have, for a while.  
"How long have you known?" He asked. Al crossed his arms, refusing to look at him.  
"I've suspected it since Dad showed up. I didn't _know_ until just now, when you confirmed it."  
"What gave it away?"  
"Your behaviour."

He swallowed.  
"Have you said anything to the Pipsqueak?"  
Al hesitated.  
"No. I didn't know how to bring it up."  
"Good. Don't."  
Al opened his mouth to argue; Envy interrupted before he had the chance.  
"He's having a hard-enough time adjusting to everything else. This is just another spanner in the works that he doesn't need right now. Besides, it doesn't change anything."

"It changes everything!" Al blurted out. "How could it not! Envy…"  
He cut himself off sharply, glancing at the door. When he spoke again, he had lowered his voice.  
"They were together, weren't they?"  
"Hohenheim and Dante, you mean?"  
He nodded.  
"Fine, you caught me. They were."  
"Which makes her…"  
"_Yes_, okay? You know all my dirty little secrets – well, almost all of them. You happy?"

Al took the chair Ed had been sitting on, his expression thoughtful.  
"Well, it makes sense now."  
"What does?"  
"That infuriating loyalty you have to her, even though she's done nothing but hurt you."  
"She wasn't always like that," Envy muttered.  
"Wasn't she? I can't imagine you turn into the murderous, body stealing type overnight."  
Envy groaned, gritting his teeth.  
"Maybe someday, I'll explain it to you."  
"Why not now?"

He paused. Part of him still didn't trust Alphonse. He was starting to recognise the irrationality of that; he had been far more vulnerable in his presence, and he hadn't done _anything_ to harm him yet. But that didn't make the impulse go away.  
He sighed.  
"Things changed after William died, alright?"  
"William? Oh."  
"That was when they became obsessed with the Stone," Envy explained. "He died of mercury poisoning when he was seventeen. They tried to bring him back. They got me instead."  
"And Hohenheim left not long after," Al finished. "Shit. No wonder you were angry."

Envy shrugged, doing his best to stem the familiar anger that was building within him. It was difficult; he wasn't used to trying to temper his emotions like this. But what he was realising, over the course of this conversation, was that it was misplaced.  
This whole time, he had blamed them. But they hadn't even been _born_ yet; how could it be their fault?  
"Apparently, I wasn't good enough," he said.  
"So that's where the name comes from," Al said, his eyes widening with the realisation. "That's what you were jealous of. You thought we _were_ good enough. You thought we had the one thing you were deemed unworthy of; a family."  
He laughed; a hollow sound, devoid of his usual bubbly joy.  
"Sorry to disappoint; our family's messed up too."

He leaned forwards.  
"Why are you telling me all of this? Why now?"  
"Well, I've come to hear all about _your_ family problems."  
"Not by choice, I'm sure."  
"Still. It's only fair I tell you some of mine, right? We're teammates, as your brother said. Besides, it affects you. Dante's history with Hohenheim is the reason she's after _you._"  
"What does she want with us, Envy? Really. It can't just be about the Stone; if it was, I think the other homunculi demonstrate that she could find someone else if she really wanted to."  
"You're not wrong," Envy said. "I mean, it's partially about the Stone; but there's more to it than that."  
"Like what?"  
"Look, I'll tell you – but you're _really_ not gonna like it. You ready?"

Al sighed. "Can't be worse than finding out our Mom's a homunculus."  
Envy grinned; that familiar, devious, shark-toothed smile he was known for.  
"She wants Edward. She thinks she can steal the body of someone close to him, and recapture what she lost with Hohenheim."  
The effect was instantaneous. Al shuddered so violently, Envy could damn near hear his teeth click.  
He laughed.  
"I warned you. I knew you'd react like that."  
"Ew…"  
Al glanced at the door again.  
"You know we _have_ to warn Ed about that, right?"  
"Yeah, I know."  
"And you know the first thing he's gonna ask is how you know that."  
"At which point, I'll say I overheard her talking about it. And you're gonna smile and nod, and not say anything to contradict my story."

His voice instinctively dropped to a threatening growl, one he had used hundreds of times; although, he realised, he wasn't sure he would ever actually _act_ on it if Alphonse did break his confidence. He was no longer certain he could.  
"You know…" Al said, in a gentle tone, "You're going to have to tell him eventually."  
"I know that, damnit. Just… not yet. Not now. He needs to be focused, and this? It's literally the most distracting thing he could possibly hear. It's bad enough that you know."  
He turned away from Al, staring out the window.  
"Maybe when all this is over, if we survive that long…"  
"We will."  
"How can you be so sure of that?"  
Al shrugged. "Well, we've lived this long. Double amputations, human transmutation, vicious murderers be damned. None of it's taken us out _yet_."  
"Yeah, but Edward had-"

He shut himself up at the last second, realising he wasn't sure if Al knew yet. He didn't want to get beaten up by the Pipsqueak for accidentally starting another fight.  
"Alchemy?"  
He breathed a sigh of relief at Al's matter-of-fact tone, and the lack of surprise in his eyes.  
"Yeah, he told me. Or more accurately, I figured it out."  
"You really are too smart for your own good, you know that?"  
"I've heard as much," Al answered; Envy caught barely the slightest tinge of unease on his expression, before it turned to complete shock.  
"Wait. Did you just… compliment me? You really are injured, aren't you?"  
"Oh, shut up. Don't let it go to your head, Tin Can. That's what your brother's for, remember?"

"Our brother," Al corrected. Envy flinched.  
"Right. I'll get used to that, eventually."  
"You don't have to right now. I won't say anything; on one condition."  
"Yeah? And what's that?"  
"You have to promise you'll tell him yourself, at some point."  
"Yeah, yeah. Whatever. Thanks, I guess."

They sat in silence for a while, Envy watching Al's face. He couldn't figure out why he hadn't left already; he was clearly friendly with Colonel Flamethrower, shouldn't he be rushing to see him?  
Then he saw it; something in Alphonse's eyes. It was buried deep, clearly an art he had perfected over the years; but it was _there_. It was making Envy uncomfortable. That goddamn _feeling_ was starting to come back; the one he could never quite place.

"Are you okay?" he finally asked. Al shook his head, blinking.  
"Yeah."  
"Are you sure?" Envy asked again, narrowing his eyes. "Your words are saying one thing, and your body language is saying another."  
Al didn't answer. Envy leaned forwards.  
"You found out about the alchemy _today_, didn't you?"  
"Yeah."  
"Idiot," he muttered. Al glanced at him.  
"Not you," he clarified. "The Pipsqueak. I _told_ him to tell you earlier than this, damnit."  
"Rich, coming from you."  
Envy flushed.

"Yeah, yeah. Okay. You might have a point."  
"Might?"  
And then Envy did something with Alphonse he'd never thought he would. He laughed.

. . .

Ed felt himself slip back into his defensive State Alchemist demeanour the moment he was around Mustang again. He supposed it would take time to get used to being around him, and _not_ having him ride his ass constantly about filing his reports.  
He crossed his arms. "Thanks for coming."  
Roy's impassive expression didn't change, but Ed could tell he was tense. "Where's the homunculus?"  
"Upstairs, resting."  
"From what? What exactly happened?"  
"Okay," Ed sighed. "We should probably sit down."

He explained the story to Roy and Hawkeye over coffee. By the time he had finished, they both looked confused.  
"What?" He asked. "Did I grow a second head or something?"  
"Did you just say the homunculus put himself in danger to protect Alphonse?" Hawkeye asked, seeming unable to control her curiosity. Roy shook his head.  
"They have healing abilities. It probably wasn't a big deal for him."  
"Actually," Ed said, "Hawkeye's closer to the mark. He didn't know he had his healing powers at that moment in time. He's been… recovering from an injury, of sorts. He hasn't had any access to _any_ of his powers, until recently."

"Ah," Roy said. "Well, that explains why you two were so determined to protect him in Central. Let me guess; you're responsible for his recovery?"  
Ed nodded. "We found him passed out on the street. I kinda promised Al we'd help him out."  
"You should really stop making promises to your brother; they seem to always get you in trouble."  
Ed didn't miss the smirk forming on Roy's lips.  
Hawkeye was still pensive; she seemed almost to retreat inwards as she spoke. "It's interesting that he would willingly put himself in danger to protect someone else. Especially if, as you say, he had no guarantee that he would survive it. Maybe you and Al are right; maybe we judge these creatures too soon."  
"Don't be too fast to _forgive_, either," Roy said, giving her a stern look. "We know what they've done. This one in particular, Ed once described as being quite the psychopath."

Ed leaned back against his chair, crossed his legs, and rested his hands behind his head.  
"Honestly, it feels weird to say this… but I think he's changing for the better. At least a little. He's still an asshole, but he's calmed down a lot. He's less violent, less angry – and like I said, he's actually helped us out once or twice. I don't know what to make of it."  
Roy thought about it.  
"Might be Al's doing. You said he was spending a lot of time with him, right? Maybe he's a good influence on him."  
"Must be," Ed agreed, chuckling. "But we shouldn't be surprised, in that case. You know Al; he brings out the good in everyone."  
"He does seem to have a talent for it," Hawkeye said.

Roy glanced towards the stairs. "You mentioned the homunculus was resting. Is he well enough to move?"  
"Don't know, he hasn't tried. Why?"  
"We need to discuss our next move. And as much as I hate it, he should probably be present for that conversation."  
Ed sighed. He was already developing a headache.  
"I'll go get him."


End file.
